


Merman

by Arel_Rhink



Series: Merman [2]
Category: Rhett & Link, rhink - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-26
Updated: 2016-10-22
Packaged: 2018-07-18 10:16:41
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 23,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7310911
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arel_Rhink/pseuds/Arel_Rhink
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Link gets a job as an aquarist for the new merman exhibit at the local aquarium.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> make sure you read the prologue first!! :D

“So, Link, remember. Before entering your exhibit, make sure your halls are vacuumed and all litter is disposed of. Once a week, you must clean your tank – you need to vacuum any waste left by the habitants, hose down the rocks above the water level, and scrub any scum, dust, or fingerprints on the windows, both inside and out. Every day, you must feed your habitants twice a day. Once when you clock in, and once before you clock out.”

“Okay. I think I can handle that.”

“Good. Now, I understand you’ll also be expecting tours in a couple days, given the exhibit will be ready between then and now. Here at the Marine Science Facility and Aquarium, we like to make our tours fun and interactive for our visitors. Your exhibit especially would attract more guests with an interactive gimmick. Once you have an idea you think could work, contact me for approval.”

“Wait wait wait… What exactly is my exhibit? Like, what animals am I watching over?” Link stopped his supervisor dead in her tracks. She looked up from the list of duties on her iPhone and caught Link’s eyes with a cold stare of her own.

“Oh you’ll see,” she responded. She then turned and continued leading the new aquarist to the end of the west corridor. There was a sign between the gate and the shuttered-down window reading: Coming Soon – Trevor the Merman. Link furrowed his brows in sheer confusion. His supervisor cleared her throat impatiently, hinting at Link to continue following her.

He was led down a winding hall that opened up to the clear skies and large, flat rocks beneath their feet. The supervisor handed Link the exhibit key. The young man excitedly unlocked the interior gate and trotted giddily inside, getting as close to the edge of the tank as possible without falling in. He stretched and squinted into the water, trying to find the supposedly mythical creature.

“Isn’t there supposed to be a merman in here? All I see are… some kind of fish… What are those? Trout?” he asked.

“Mhm…” the supervisor answered. “And he’s in there. He’s just been reluctant to show himself since he got here. Shy beasts, those mermen are. At least that’s all I’ve gathered babysitting him before we hired you. Who knows… Maybe you’ll break him into being more sociable.”

“I guess we’ll see… uh, Kathleen,” Link commented, reading her name on the plastic tag pinned to her shirt.

“That’s ma’am to you, newbie,” she retorted sharply. This was obviously a woman Link didn’t want to argue with, so he nodded as he corrected himself. “Good. So that’s all I got for ya regarding your job requirements. You can stay in the exhibit if you wanna try getting Trevor to come out and play. Just remember to lock up when you’re done. I’ll email your work schedule to you in an hour so you can start first thing in the morning.”

Before Link could ask any further questions, she left. She surely had other business to attend to, so whatever he wanted to ask he could shoot her an email later. He took a quick glance at his phone. 11:42. He had plenty of daylight to catch, and he didn’t have anything else planned for the day, so he thought he might as well hang around the tank for a bit… see if the merman would show up.

He lied flat on his stomach by the water’s edge with his chin resting on his folded arms. He watched the school of trout swim about aimlessly, wondering what their lives must be like. He asked them random questions and answered for them in funny voices. After a few minutes, he shook his head to help him come back to reality.

“What am I doing?” Link asked himself. He looked around briefly, spotting the large tanks filled with minnows and crawdads. He peeked into the tank. There were still a few minnows swimming around with the trout, but very few crawdads.

Link put on the safety gloves and grabbed a handful of crawdads, tossing them into the tank in the hopes of the merman coming out for extra snacks. However, the trout swarm the crustaceans and gobbled them up like a pack of ravenous wolves. The fish dispersed and returned to their regular swimming, but there was still no sign of the merman that was supposedly in there.

He checked his phone with a solemn sigh. 3:30. The aquarium was supposed to close at 4. He felt like he should start heading home, accepting that he was just hired to babysit a bunch of smelly trout. His hand gripped the locking mechanism on the exhibit gate…

… when he heard a strange sound.

It was ethereal and hollow. The whisper-like song sounded like it emanated from his own head, vibrating his skull in a wavelength that felt soft, fuzzy, and quite pleasurable.

Link froze in shock until he heard the voice beckon him again. There were no words in the song – at least not any words Link could understand.

The confused brunet developed sharp goosebumps down the length of his sun-tanned arms. He stepped away from the gate and returned to the water’s edge. Listening intently for any more ghostly singing, Link sat by the very edge. He mindlessly dipped the tip of his index finger into the water, moving it in circles like how someone would rub the edge of a glass to make it sing. He soon found himself humming the tune he heard, replicating the tone as best as he could.

The singing returned, answering to Link’s verse. Link was so entranced by the alluring voice, he didn’t notice his finger being slowly tugged deeper into the tank. The force grew suddenly stronger, waking Link from his trance.

“Whoa!!!” he yelped, freeing himself from the hold and scrambling to his feet. He was about to make a run for it when something green and somewhat humanlike emerged slightly from the surface of the water. It looked like a full head of seaweed green hair with a piercing set of bluish-green eyes. The multi-toned, emerald skin of the creature shimmered from the slick droplets of water.

A gasp slipped through Link’s parted lips as the creature exposed more of himself, right up to his broad, striped shoulders. The creature had a short, green beard that resembled soft coral. There was black twine tied around his smooth neck, with a tiny shell fastened in the center.

The creature’s large eyes gazed at the human with a sparkle of admiration as his mouth opened slightly in sheer curiosity. He swam hesitantly toward the edge of the tank as Link took baby steps toward the same destination.

“H-h… Hi…” Link stuttered. He took a big breath as he kneeled closer. The merman twitched further back with widened eyes. Link brought his hands up in a surrendering motion. “Shh… It’s okay….” The merman’s eyes darted around the exhibit before landing once again at the human before him. “My name’s Link,” the human said with a chuckle. He held a trembling hand towards the other. He braced himself in case the creature decided to try to drown him again. After realizing the merman wasn’t going to return the gesture, Link withdrew his hand. “Sorry… You probably can’t understand a word I say, can you?”

“I can understand you fine,” the merman growled. His thick, dramatic eyebrows furrowed on his prominent brow. Link’s bright, blue eyes widened in surprise and fear as he fell back on his bottom. The merman snatched the edge of the tank, hoisting himself up on his strong arms. “Now, let’s get something straight,” he threatened with a burly tone. His turquoise irises held a burning intensity that made the mysterious creature so much more intimidating than what Link had expected of such an elegant specimen as a merman. “I’m sick of all you humans prodding me and capturing me and doing ANYTHING YOU CAN TO HURT ME! I WILL NOT BE CONTAINED BY YOUR FILTHY, GREEDY KIND! AS LONG AS I AM KEPT IN THIS TREACHEROUS CONFINEMENT, YOU WILL GET NO BENEFIT FROM ME! I WILL DIE IN THIS TANK IF NEED BE!!!”

“Wait! Wait!! Please!!” Link begged, sitting himself back up. “I don’t want to hurt you, okay? I – ”

“I know why you’re here…” the merman growled, calming the intensity in his tone. “You’re gonna sit here and study me… just like all the other imprisoned beings in this facility.” He dropped himself back into the water, turning back towards his underwater cave.

“Wait, no! You’ve got it all wrong…” Link called, crawling closer to the edge. The merman exposed his eyes and up from the water, glaring impatiently at the human. “I’m just here to take care of you.”

“I don’t want to be taken care of. I want out of this prison,” the merman retorted with a grumble.

“I’d want the same thing if that were me in there,” Link said. The merman’s tension relaxed some as he listened to what this human had to say. “You… You don’t deserve to be locked in here. You’re… a beautiful… magnificent creature. You weren’t made for human eyes.”

An indigo hue tinted the merman’s face as he continued gazing at the seemingly distressed human. He tried to keep his façade going, but he was having some trouble resurfacing it after such meaningful, flattering words. There was something different… something special about this human, and whatever it was was getting to him.

The merman swam right up to the edge to find the human spawning water droplets from his eyes. The tiniest of whimpers and sniffles made the merman feel something he never felt at the cause of a mere human. He tentatively raised his green hand from the water and gently touched Link’s chin, holding it up until their eyes met.

“Trevor,” the merman half-whispered. “They call me Trevor.” Link’s nerves rattled at how close this encounter was. The merman actually touched him! He tried to hold back a smile, but the corners of his mouth quivered as his face turned bright red.

A sudden marimba melody alarmed the both of them. Trevor released Link’s chin, and the brunet took his phone out from his pocket. It was 4 o’clock. The aquarium was closing.

“I, uh, gotta go,” Link said. The blush on his face didn’t want to fade just yet. He stood up and started walking backwards towards the gate. His eyes were locked onto the magnificent sea creature staring back at him with a confused expression. “I’ll… I’ll be back in the morning… See ya… Trevor.” With that, Link left the exhibit, making sure to lock everything up before heading out of the building.

The merman let out a loud sigh as he submerged back into the tank. The trout all stared at him from all around him.

“Yooo… dude, what the heck was that?” one of the trout asked.

“I thought you straight-up hated humans, man. What’s your deal?” another added.

“I, uh… I do…” the merman answered. He kept his head dipped, hoping the trout wouldn’t see the bluish blush creeping up on his face as he started towards his cave.

“Nah-ah. That’s not what it looked like,” another trout commented. “Something happened up there, and we wanna know what went down.”

The merman ignored the prying fish, diving deep into his personal dwelling. When he first arrived, he made a point to ensure his own privacy. He curled himself at the dead end of the cave and held his dark emerald tail close to his chest.

With only the rock walls to hear his thoughts, he whispered, “I honestly don’t know…”


	2. Chapter 2

The merman eagerly waited all night for Link to come back in the morning, but was a bit upset that he wasn’t paying much attention to him. Instead, Link was messing around on that weird rectangle thing he kept checking yesterday. After staring impatiently at him, he shrieked at him like an albatross, claiming the brunet’s attention rather aggressively.

Link jumped back in surprise, peeking at the merman poking his head out of the water. “Oh, right! Sorry, man,” he answered. He shoved his phone back into his pocket before bringing a pail of crawdads and minnows over to the tank. “Sorry. I forgot I need to feed you first thing in the morning,” he said while pouring the little creatures into the tank, most of which were promptly gobbled up by the swarm of trout. The merman didn’t take anything, just stayed put and watched Link’s every move.

The human grabbed one more crawdad and carefully handed one to him. “Trevor, come on. You should eat.” The merman just stared vacantly at the crustacean aimlessly wriggling in the gloved hand. “Do you even eat these things?”

“Mhm,” Trevor responded. “I uh, basically have the same diet as… I don’t know what you call them. They have… a thin round nose and squeak a lot?” Link tossed the crawdad to the merman. His green, slick hands caught it mid-air as he watched Link take his phone out again. After fiddling with it for a while, the brunet turned the screen towards him with Google Images open. “Yeah. That,” the merman replied, crunching on the crustacean.

“We call those dolphins,” Link said, putting the device beside him on the ground.

“That thing… it’s weird,” Trevor commented, indicating the phone. “Does it always show visions of dolphins?”

“No,” Link chuckled. “Earlier, I was trying to do some brainstorming.”

“Witchcraft?!?!”

“What?? No. It means, like, thinking up ideas. That kind of thing,” Link answered. “My boss wants me to come up with something interactive to attract more guests.” The merman seemed off-put by the idea of bringing more people to see him, but he didn’t back away. “I mean, you’re really nice to see in real life… but she wants something, you know, like more memorable or photo-op worthy.”

“What does –”

“I’ll tell you later,” the brunet interrupted. He changed his sitting position so that his feet were dipped in the water. Those strange-looking appendages caught the curious merman’s eye, and his face adopted a bluish hue as he watched the little toes wiggle under the water. Suddenly, he realized Link was still talking.

“Maybe even a trick show or something! If you don’t like that, maybe we could do some kind of name translation thing. What do you think?”

The merman was silent for an uncomfortable amount of time. His turquoise eyes focus darted from one thing to another on Link’s body, as if his shoulders or lap would have the answer.

“Oh, come on, Trevor. I know you don’t like the idea of humans coming to stare at you or touch you… but… I’m just trying to do my job. I don’t wanna get fired on my first day,” Link begged.

“What do you mean by ‘fired’?” the merman asked with a tone of deep concern.

“I wouldn’t work here anymore. I wouldn’t get to see you every day… and I wanna learn more about you and your people, Trevor.”

Link suddenly perked up, with a mental lightbulb flashing. “How do you feel about… like a Q and A session? Tourists come in and ask a couple questions. You don’t have to answer all of them if you don’t want to!” Link begged.

Trevor’s focus dropped from Link and drifted to the sparkling waves between them as he took his time considering the idea. He saw the trout all staring at him under the water, hearing their faint voices urging him to go through with it. He nervously looked back at the magnificent human with a light blush.

“Um… Only if I can try it on you first,” he finally responded.

“Like, me ask you questions?” Link asked with a smile.

“I want to ask you questions,” Trevor corrected, swimming forward until his hands were just beside Link’s thighs, gripping the edge of the tank. Link agreed as a dark pink tone flooded his face. The merman could hear the trout underneath them shouting exuberantly like a crowd at a concert, but he tried to ignore them as he tried to come up with some questions for his caretaker.

“You said your name’s Link, right?”

“Mhm. It’s a, uh, nickname. It’s what I go by,” Link answered, locking his ankles together and pressing his feet against the wall, afraid of making contact with the being who was excruciatingly close. As far as Link knew, Trevor was unpredictable and short-tempered. Who knew what would happen if he accidentally touched him with his foot, or worse, kicked him?

The merman’s eyes widened brightly. “Oh, okay. I got it…” He paused for a moment to gather his thoughts more, still trying to ignore the ruckus beneath them. “So, Link… Have you ever been on a boat?”

“Well, I was on a little motorboat once… when I was, like, seven.”

“What were you doing on it?”

Link giggled, mostly to himself. “Pretending to drive it. I wasn’t supposed to be on it, and it didn’t even belong to anyone I knew.”

“You’re a trouble-making scamp,” Trevor commented with a sly grin, hiding his giggles behind his lips.

“Hey! I was seven!” Link retorted.

“Once a scamp, always a scamp,” the merman teased, chuckling lightly. His fun was interrupted when a trout bumped into Trevor’s waist. “Hey! What’s your problem?!” the merman grumbled. Link leaned forward and saw the little fish wiggle around the two of them.

“PSST!” the trout called. Only the merman could hear and understand it. “Ask him if he eats seafood! This is very crucial information!”

“I HAVE A SUGGESTION” another chimes, followed by a swarm of trout shouting suggestions for questions.

“WHICH TROUT IS HIS FAVORITE?!?!”

“HOW FAST CAN HE SWIM?!?!”

“WHY DO FEET LOOK WEIRD?!?!”

“WHY DOES HIS SKIN WRINKLE IN THE WATER?!?!”

Trevor already started feeling a headache kicking in, and he was absolutely not happy about their interruption.

“You okay?” Link asked, seeing the irritation in the merman’s eyes.

“I just, uh…” Trevor replied, moving a bit closer to the human, accidentally brushing his body against Link’s warm legs. The two of them feel heat rising to their faces, and boy did the trout notice. Their suggestions quickly took a turn.

“IS HE SINGLE?!?!”

“HOW DOES HE SMELL SO NICE?!?!”

“DO HUMANS FEEL LOVE?!?!”

“HOW DO HUMANS MATE?!?!”

These suggestions made Trevor nervous to no avail, and he became so flustered he was losing control of himself.

He darted into the water and screeched at the trout, sending violent vibrations through the tank. The nosy fish scattered throughout the habitat, hiding underneath, inside, and behind anything they could find. Once the water was clear, the merman shot like a missile into his cave for a much needed respite.

Meanwhile, Link stood at the water’s edge peering into the water with a frown on his lips, worried about the merman who disappeared into the water.

Not long after, Link went to his gear closet and returned to the tank with his scuba suit, goggles, oxygen tank, and flippers, along with the cleaning equipment. He figured cleaning the tank would give him the opportunity to check out the exhibit and see what’s going on with Trevor.

He submerged with vacuum in hand, sucking up any waste on the bottom of the tank. He was hardly paying much attention, looking around the large tank but seeing no merman. The trout collectively gathered around the human, and followed his every move, which Link found more cute than anything. What he didn’t know was what they were saying. The merman could hear them, however – even if he didn’t want to.

“Yo, what happened to his feet?!”

“He’s got fins!! AHH!!”

“He must be magic!!”

“A shape-shifter!!”

These comments drove the merman mad with curiosity. He squirmed up to the opening of his cave to take a little peek to see what those loudmouth fish were talking about. In the back of his mind, he knew it was ridiculous that Link could shapeshift – or even have fins for that matter. He saw what his feet looked like, in the water and out. It would be ridiculous if…

Yet there he was, all geared up with fins at the ends of his long, tanned legs. He felt heat rising in his cheeks again as he saw the beautiful human swimming closer, not really knowing where he was going.

“Hey!! We got a peepin’ tom over here!!!” a trout shouted, followed by boisterous laughter from the others. Boiled with embarrassment and rage, Trevor shot out of his cave, slapping the annoying fish all over the place with his long tail. To Link, the merman was just a green blur zooming around the water until the fish were spread around the tank.

Once the merman slowed enough for Link to see him properly, the human swam over to him and pointed upwards before swimming to the surface. Trevor followed happily, knowing the trout would be out of his hair for a while at least. He broke through the water to see Link removing his mask.

“What the heck was that?!” the brunet asked angrily. “I don’t know what’s going on with you and those fish, but they certainly didn’t deserve what you just did!! Not to mention, your zipping and zooming around the tank stirred up the water, so now I can’t continue cleaning until the water settles!”Link climbed out of the tank and removed his flippers, showing off his feet and those cute little toes that the merman wanted to play with so bad.

“I’m… I’m sorry… but they were being mean! They’re always teasing me and calling me names!” He smacked the surface of the water in spite.

“Do they now?” Link asked, taking off the oxygen tank and setting the heavy contraption aside.

“They drive me nuts. I hate them,” the merman grumbled, crossing his arms in front of his broad chest. Link wanted to giggle at how childish his grumpy pout was, along with a little bit of something else.

“You don’t hate them,” Link commented with a voice as calm and soft as sea foam. “Come here.” The merman inched closer, right up to the edge of the tank. Link gestured for him to come up even closer, and Trevor followed, hoisting himself up with his strong arms – just enough to meet Link’s level.

The human scooted against the rocky ground and reached for the merman’s curious face. Link smiled in amusement as he peeled a tiny piece of algae off his nose. Trevor froze at the touch. An indigo tone tinted his bashful face. He wiggled his nose at the slight tickle the algae left behind, and Link scratched and pinched at the tip of it to make the tickle go away. A sheepish grin spread across Trevor’s face, and Link chuckled at the adorable sight.

The brunet stuck the piece of algae on his own nose and smiled back. Trevor giggled at the sight. Link leaned closer as his smile widened, baring his kitten-like teeth. The merman then brought his hand to Link’s face, peeling off the algae like Link had done just moments ago.

The two continued smiling at each other. Light giggles sometimes spurted out. Once Trevor’s increasing body heat got a little out of control, he looked away and began ducking into the water.

“I, uh…” the merman began, running his hands through his soft, green wisps of hair. “The water’s pretty settled now… if… if you want to finish what you started, uh, down there. With the cleaning and stuff. I… yeah.”

“Okay,” Link replied. “No more bullying the trout.”

“Tell them to stop bullying me and maybe I will,” Trevor commented. Only his head poked out of the water.

Without hesitation, Link dropped his foot into the tank and kicked the wall with his heel a couple times. “Hey you trout fishes! Quit picking on my friend here, okay? If you’re nice, I’ll give you a snack!” When he finished, he took his leg back out of the water and flashed one last smile before the merman completely dipped under the calm waves of the tank, disappearing before Link’s very eyes.

The merman darted to his cave, paying no mind to the trout or anything they had to say. Once he got to the end, he rose to the little air pocket, peeking out only up to his neck. He took one look at the piece of algae he and Link played with, smiling at the fond memory associated with it. He then stuck it on a relatively dry part of the rocky wall, right beside a half-drawn doodle. Trevor smiled greatly at his first treasure. He reached into a cavity of the wall and took out a small rock and etched more details onto the unfinished portrait. Sweeping bangs… narrow, shadowed eyes hiding behind thick-rimmed glasses… and a charming tilted smile. Quite proud of his work, he set the small stone back into its cubby. He grinned dreamily at the etching.

He brought two fingers to his lips, pressing them softly against the skin, before placing them gently on the drawing’s cheek. He could feel his heart beating harder in his chest, and it confused him in the most pleasant way.

And to think, this was because of a human.

There was a sudden splash in the main tank area. The merman left his memories inside the cave, and then swam out to Link, who was back in his gear. Trevor saw the squeegee in the human’s utility belt and displayed it questioningly. Link took it back and moved it against the glass wall, scraping off some of the algae that had been festering there. He turned and handed the tool to Trevor, who graciously took it and began using it. Before he knew it, he felt something really warm and soft resting on his back. When he realized it was Link’s hand, he blushed profusely. If this is what he would get for helping this wonderful human, he’d gladly assist him any day.


	3. Chapter 3

“They’re almost here!” Link enthused. The merman, on the other hand, was still nervous and quite uncomfortable. His whole life he had spent hiding from these ‘monsters’, and now he was expected to expose himself to a bunch of them. The brunet rushed over to Trevor and tousled his slick, green hair, making sure every piece was perfectly in place. The merman calmed down some, almost melting at the feeling of Link’s fingers combing through his hair.

This was also the first time he was completely out of the water, as the magnificent creature lounged on one of the exhibit’s boulders. Link marveled at the remarkable sight of the merman’s long tail that shimmered under the morning sun. He wondered how the skin would feel against his palms. Probably slick and firm like a dolphin, since that’s partly what he’s related to, right? He admired the curvature in the merman’s pose as his fingers continued combing through those soft, green locks. Trevor had some difficulty getting into a comfortable position due to the dorsal fin on his lower back, but they both managed to figure something out.

When Link finished fussing with Trevor’s hair, he moved to go grab something his boss brought for him. The merman was so confused with the large object, and cringed when it was handed to him. It was oddly lightweight, and barely fit in his grasp.

“What is this thing?” he asked as his hands explored the foreign object.

“It’s your prop for the tours. It’s called a trident,” Link answered, admiring the sun’s reflection off the prop’s rose gold surface. “You’ve never seen one of these before?”

“Not that I can remember…” He poked at the tips of the trident’s prongs, and was surprised to find them not as sharp as he expected them to be. He continued to stare at it with furrowed brows. “Soo… why do I need this? Is it like, to defend myself against the mangy rascals who jump the fence, or do I stab the ones with stupid questions?” He thrusted the prop forward in a light stabbing motion, earning a giggle from the human beside him.

“No, no… It’s all just for show. You can pretend to get defensive with it if you need to, but you shouldn’t have to worry about it,” the human answered with a smile. He pushed his glasses back up his nose as he trotted towards the gate where the tour was waiting just outside.

The merman, however, was still a little overwhelmed with what was about to happen. He felt like he should’ve rehearsed or something, worrying that he might say the wrong thing, or make the tourists feel uncomfortable. Most of all, he was still wondering if this Q and A thing was a good idea. He couldn’t help but feel his fight or flight instincts come in. He wanted to abort this whole thing and go hide in his cave for eternity.

But he wanted to impress Link… to come off as fearless before these creatures that he’d always believed would tear apart his soul and body.

When he saw Link return to the exhibit, he adjusted his posture, making him seem even taller and much more confident than he really was. Then he saw the people behind him, varying in shapes, colors and sizes. His heart started to feel like it was going to jump out of his chest or explode from the pressure. The smaller humans giggled and scurried closer to the nervous merman, and Trevor suddenly forgot what he was doing for a moment.

“I proudly present,” Link introduced, showing off the magnificent creature with both arms like he was Vannah White, “our local merman… Trevor.” The guests applauded and grinned with awe at the unbelievable sight. Children gathered at the front of the gate and squealed in delight. The merman nodded his head softly, as if quick movements would startle the guests. “He is the first and only merman to ever have documented contact with humans, and will gladly take any questions you have. I politely ask that you keep them as less intrusive as possible, for as beautiful as this specimen is, he can still be quite unpredictable.”

Beautiful. There’s that word again. Hearing it come from Link’s mouth and the thought of that word being associated with himself brought heat flooding to the merman’s bashful face. While most of the crowd collected their thoughts, a couple hands from the youngest of the bunch shot upwards in excitement. Link pointed one of them out, a little boy no older than six, to ask his question.

“Are you really a mermaid?” the boy asked, excitedly hoisting himself a little higher against the fence.

Trevor failed to hide the slightest of smiles as he watched the tiny humans waiting for the answer of the supposed mythical beast. “Ah… well, no…” he started, earning confused glances from both the guests and Link. “I’m, uh, male… so I can’t exactly be a mer-maid, now can I?” A couple chuckles came out from the smiling crowd, making the merman’s smile grow the tiniest bit. “I… I could prove my gender, but uh, I wouldn’t want to scare the kids.” The adults in the crowd laughed heartily, including Link, whose amused expression seemed to glow in Trevor’s eyes. Another hand shot up, and the merman called on them before Link even noticed.

“Why don’t you have scales?” the teenager asked, taping the experience with her phone.

Trevor shot her a startled, confused expression. “Why don’t you have scales?!” he barked, pointing at her with his trident. More laughter emanated from the crowd, including the girl who asked the question.

“Because I’m not a fish!” she giggled.

“Well, neither am I!” he retorted. A wide smile grew on his bearded face. “I’m a mammal – just like you folks.” He shot a quick glance at his smiling caretaker, remembering their chat from yesterday. “Think of me as… more dolphin-like. I can do anything those clowns can do. Except blow water out my neck. That would certainly be interesting.” Earning a few more laughs, Trevor realized he was getting the hang of this. He was definitely feeling more comfortable with this than he anticipated, and every time he saw Link there was a wide grin on his face that melted his heart.

More people started raising their hands, and the merman didn’t hesitate to call on other tourists. He found a bunch of their questions amusing, and eventually began messing around with them as the tours continued throughout the day. He was rolling through the questions like nobody’s business, not even pausing to think before giving the people an answer they found entertaining. That is, until the tiniest little girl asked her question to the mystical being.

“Do you have a girlfriend?” the little tyke asked.

“Oh, yes. Lots of friends of the female type at home. Why do you ask?” Trevor responded, playing with his prop aimlessly.

“Nooo… like… someone you’re in love with,” she corrected.

The merman’s breathing hitched for a moment. For the first time all day he was impeccably speechless. He took a glance at Link, whose amusement started to hide behind the concern in his eyes. Trevor blushed once he realized he had been staring at him long enough for someone to notice, and turned his attention back to the little girl.

“I… Well… Maybe…” was all he choked out. He subtly turned to peek at his caretaker once again. Link stared back with arched eyebrows and a light smile playing at the corner of his lips. More heat rose to the merman’s face, even in his attempt to pull himself together. “I…” Seeing the merman’s confidence faltering, Link moved towards the crowd and ushered them back into the main part of the aquarium. Trevor breathed a sigh of relief once the crowd’s backs were turned, and lied on the boulder in exhaustion.

While Link was taking care of the crowd waiting outside the gate, a couple men from the last tour snuck back into the exhibit. One of them snapped a couple quick discreet photos of the creature lying on the rocks before showing them to the other man.

“You think that’s the one we lost?”

“Of course it is, Bill! What are the chances that there are two mermen hanging around in this city?!” the other one answered, shoving the shorter of the two with his elbow.

“Good point,” Bill muttered, pulling a strange flip phone from his pocket and quickly dialing a long stream of numbers. The other guy snapped a couple more photos before tucking it away. The both of them put the phone close enough for them both to hear the other person on the line.

“We found him.”


	4. Chapter 4

“He’s here!” the trout enthused, swimming rampantly around the tank. The merman blushed and ducked deeper underwater until some of the trout prodded at him with their faces, pushing the nervous creature upwards.

“Wha – HEY!” he whined. Everywhere he scrambled to escape, more and more trout surrounded him to keep him in their grasp.

“Just do it, man!” a rather chubby trout exclaimed, swimming around the merman excitedly. “Just follow our advice! Trust me! Do it just right and he’ll be algae in your hands.”

The merman blushed at the fantasy, the very idea of Link warming up to him in such a way tingled his spine. “I… I’ll try…”

“’Atta boy! Go get ‘im!” The trout cheered the anxious merman on as he floated to the surface. He watched the human walk over with the buckets of food. His struggling made the merman wish he had the ability to help him, because of course not having legs is kind of a problem.

“Hey, Trevor! Good morning!” Link greeted. The merman shuddered at the sudden voice, and his entire body heated up. “You did really well yesterday, and you looked great.” The human smiled warmly as he released some of the sea critters into the tank.

“Uh…” The Merman gulped. “Not as great as you.” Practically his whole body adopted an indigo hue as his tail shuddered beneath the surface. Link shot a questioning glance at the merman. A half smile adorned his face.

“Yeah?”

“Mhm!” the merman hummed, forcing the sound through his tense throat. He waded closer with the help of some of the trout behind and beneath him. He forced a chuckle, coming out much louder than intended.

“You okay? You seem awfully jumpy this morning,” Link asked.

“Jumpy? What?! Nah… Nope, not jumpy! What does that even mean, jumpy? I’m not jumpy! Haha!” Trevor made a sudden spin, turning away from Link for a moment. He felt pressured, and the anxiety was eating him alive.

A sudden touch on his shoulder made the merman jump and turn back around, finding Link in the tank. His uniform was arranged into a pile on the platform by the water.

“What’re you…?” His eyes searched the human’s ravishing blue gaze.

“I thought you could use some comfort. Something’s gotten you all tense and I wanna help you feel better.” The merman shivered at the heat of the soft, dampened hand caressing its way down the length of his arm. Before he could even process what was happening, Link wrapped his arms around Trevor’s waist, holding the slick merman against his bare torso. The merman remained motionless in his grasp, face completely violet and eyes bulging wide. Link only squeezed tighter, gently nestling his head beside Trevor’s. He eventually loosened up, but he hesitated to hold Link in return. The human seemed adamant in not letting go until his embrace was reciprocated, so Trevor decided to go with it, slithering his wet arms over Link’s and wrapping them around his lithe figure. He let out a heavy exhale as his beard brushed up against Link’s cheek. He felt himself physically relax in the brunet’s gentle, yet firm embrace.

“Um…” Trevor breathed. “Wanna hear a fun fact?” he asked, trying to keep his mind off the enticing feeling of the man’s chest rising and falling against his.

“Uh, sure,” Link replied, pulling away just far enough to see the merman’s face. Trevor’s darkened eyes pierced Link’s vision with a stupefying half-lidded gaze. The sight gave the human a wave of goosebumps.

The merman spoke in a baritone growl, smirking suggestively at the man in his arms. “Did you know that a merman’s kiss can satisfy a human into drowning?”

Link’s eyebrows shot upwards as he scrambled out of Trevor’s grasp, nearly choking on air as he swam towards the edge of the tank. Not quite the reaction the merman was hoping for.

“Whaaaat?!” he chuckled, keeping his tone playful so Link would calm down. “I… I was just messing with you!” He made his way to the edge of the tank as Link dried off. “It is true fact though… but –”

“No thanks!” Link called, face entirely red as he pulled his clothing back on. “I choose life!” Trevor let out a hearty laugh at the man’s response, but it died down as Link moved to his cell phone by the gate.

He ducked into the water for a moment, glaring at the trout who had been watching this whole time. “You told me that was a good line! Look what good that did!! He thinks I’m a freak now!”

“Well, you are!” the trout joked back before resuming their fishly activities.

Trevor grumbled to himself before rising back to the surface. As soon as his head breached the water, Link called to him.

“Tour’s almost here. Gotta get you ready,” he announced. The merman obliged, jumping onto the large rock he sat upon yesterday. Link mussed with Trevor’s hair for a bit before handing him the trident. “Whatever you do… don’t… scare them with morbid fun facts, okay?” Trevor turned to Link, relieved to see the man smiling.

Okay… Maybe he doesn’t think I’m a freak, he thought, sighing as the human moved towards the gate. That day’s tours went by a lot faster and Trevor was much more comfortable entertaining the guests. The last tour of the day, however, was quite different. Link and Trevor had to make more of an effort if they wanted to entertain them.

“No questions?” the merman asked. The group of men seemed more interested in the structure of the habitat than the main attraction, making Trevor especially uncomfortable. “I, uh, got some fun facts if you’re interested!” The merman shot a glance at Link, hoping the man had paid attention. He smiled brightly when Link closed his eyes, recollecting the day’s earlier events.

“So you’re the famous city merman, huh?” a man asked, wandering over as close to the tank as possible. His piercing hazel eyes focused on the merman a couple meters away. Before either Trevor or Link could provide an answer, the man spoke again. “Where did you come from?” His deep voice resonated in agitating wavelengths, and the question itself made the merman feel defensive.

“Uhh… the ocean?”

“You know what I mean!” the man retorted sharply, startling both the merman and his caretaker. Some of the other men stopped observing and photographing the habitat, and began crowding around the man asking the questions. The ringleader clasped his hands, pressing his two index fingers against his lips. “Listen,” he sighed, “let’s just skip the formalities. To cut this short, this creature doesn’t belong here. It’s my private property that was stolen by this facility to be exposed to the public.” He glanced at the caretaker for a response.

“Excuse me… sir… but this merman is a he, and if you have any issues with him being here, talk to the people in charge of this facility,” Link stated, crossing his arms in front of his chest. The merman, however, was only focused on getting as far away from the men as possible. Link started taking notice, and spoke up once more. “Now, please step away from the gate or I will have to ask you to leave. You’re causing the merman discomfort.”

“We understand. We’ll leave you to your… beast.” He turned back to the entrance of the exhibit, gesturing to his men to follow him out. He stopped at the gate, letting his men go through ahead of him, and turned back around to Link and the merman. “I just thought it would be appropriate to warn you of your nearing unemployment. We’ll talk again.” With that, he followed his men out, shutting the exhibit door behind him.

Link let out a heavy exhale. “Thank goodness they’re gone.” He turned to find Trevor not at his post and his prop trident beside the boulder. “Trevor?” he called, only to receive no response. “Trevor…” he called again, a bit more annoyed. Still no answer. He sighed, knowing something was wrong with the poor merman. He went to the equipment shed on the side to put on his gear.

Fully equipped in scuba gear, Link plummeted into the water, startling the trout in the tank. He swam around, surprised to not see the merman. He continued looking around, not seeing any sign of the merman. He had to be down there though…

Out from the corner of his eye, a large group of trout swam along the wall, clumped closer together than was considered normal. He watched, baffled, as they scaled the wall and spread out at a niche in the far corner of the tank. He swam nearer, realizing it was just big enough for a person to slip inside. He shimmied through the opening and continued down this winding tunnel. He started to wonder just how big this tank really was, and how long this had been down there.

He soon spotted the end of the tunnel, and there was Trevor, curled up on the ground in a sort of fetal position. Link swims closer, placing a gentle hand on the merman’s arm. The merman merely turned to the human, his eyes large and anxious like an abandoned puppy. Link moved closer into an embrace, and the merman turned onto his back and pulled the man against him, welcoming the gesture. They remained like that for a while, until Trevor pulled the two of them up to the air pocket above them. He positioned the human to ensure he didn’t see his obsessive doodles.

Link removed his mask, breathing in the more natural air. The merman took a moment to really take in the features of this wonderful human who had captured his heart. He wrapped his arms around Link again, laying his head against the other’s warm, broad shoulders.

“I don’t want to do Q and As anymore…” the merman muttered, his voice just clear enough for Link to understand him.

“I don’t blame you,” Link replied, lifting a hand to softly massage the back of the merman’s head. “Those guys seemed really intrusive, didn’t they?”

“They are.”

Link pulled back enough to read the fear on the poor man’s face. “You sound so sure…”

Trevor took a moment to breathe, swallowing a lump in his throat before speaking. “I… I was once… well, under their ‘care’…” The merman paused, feeling a little uncomfortable talking about the topic. He pulled Link’s head back beside his, nuzzling against it for comfort. “They… did things… fed me things, experimented…”

“How did you get out of there?” Link whispered, brushing his face against the soft beard pressed up against him.

“They wanted to hurt me… get something from me – I don’t know what it was exactly, but they… They handed me over to someone at the facility to do it… I guess he didn’t like what they were doing to me.” He squeezed the human tighter, basking in the heat radiating from his body. “He busted me out… took me to his dwelling… Let me live in his private tank outside… I think they found out… and tried to take me back. I don’t really know what happened, but a female human appeared and brought me here with her people.”

It took a while for Link to process everything the merman just told him. He pulled back again, flashing a concerned expression. “So those men… That guy was telling the truth?”

“You don’t understand! I was never supposed to be there! Or here, really… But surely those goons have no legal obligations in owning me. I own myself!” he shouted, releasing Link from his embrace.

Link cupped the merman’s shoulder, rubbing the smooth skin with his thumb. “It’s okay, Trevor…”

“That’s um… That’s another thing…” the merman mumbled. Link tilted his head in confusion, urging him to continue. “The name Trevor… Well… this facility gave me that name. It… It makes me feel even more trapped than I am.” He dropped his gaze to the water beneath them, feeling more vulnerable than he ever had been.

Link brought his hand from his shoulder to the merman’s jaw, tilting his face back up to meet his gaze. “What do your mermen friends call you?”

Just him mentioning the loved ones he left back at home brought tears to the merman’s eyes. He didn’t even know they were able to emit liquid. He hadn’t felt so alone since he was first brought on land… but he wasn’t truly alone. He had Link with him. He admired the man, trusted him more than any human he ever had contact with. Loved him even, dare he say. He looked into those reassuring eyes that just the color themselves shamed the magnificent shimmer of the cerulean sea.

“Rhett.” He blushed hearing his own name come out of his mouth. It felt so foreign to him, having not heard or used it in so long, yet carried so much history of happiness and love that he smiled at the fond memories of his friends and family referring to him by that name. It made him feel safe.

“Rhett?” Link repeated, his smile shining like the evening sun. The merman’s blushing increased profusely, making his entire face nearly blue. “I like that… It suits you way better than Trevor.” He finished with a giggle, and Rhett joined in, calming down some from the anxiety that was haunting him. Once their laughter subsided, they took a moment to just acknowledge the other’s presence, enjoying having the other near. Link brought his hand back to Rhett’s face, gently caressing the soft green beard adorning his cheek. “You’ll be okay. Trust me,” he said, half whispering. His voice was like a sweet kiss to the smiling merman, who blinked slowly at the human, holding a gaze of pure love.

“I already do.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this section contains a little bit of violence.

Visitors were very disappointed that the merman exhibit discontinued tours, but the underwater display was kept open so they could at least see the magnificent creature swimming with the trout. However, the merman barely showed up. His kind was used to hiding from humans, but after those men showed up the previous day, Rhett barely came out of his cave. It hurt Link to know Rhett was worried, and he felt like he could do nothing to help ease his nerves. He knew one thing: it wasn’t good for the merman to stay cooped up inside that cave all day. Link needed him to come out and relieve his stress.

Link put on his scuba gear and plunged into the tank. He remembered where the cave was and immediately slid inside, finding Rhett resting at the far end. He wasn’t sleeping, Link realized, just sort of daydreaming and roaming his thoughts.

Not wanting to startle him too much, Link knocked on the rock wall. The vibrations softly reached Rhett, bringing him back to reality. The merman turned to the entrance to find the human waving at him. He smiled and waved back, realizing the purpose of the strange gesture. Link made another gesture, beckoning the merman to come out into the rest of the tank. Rhett chuckled before following his beloved human to the main part of the tank. Link reached out to him, but when Rhett took his hand he was carried to the surface.

“What are you doing?” Rhett asked. His mind spun rampantly, curious of why Link went into the tank to fetch him.

Link removed part of his mask so he could answer. “I just thought we could… you know, have some fun… do something to make you feel better.” Rhett blushed at how sweet the human was, and it took everything in him to keep him from squealing or getting too excited. Link giggled when he noticed the indigo tinting the merman’s cheeks. “So, uh… What do merpeople do for fun?”

Rhett let out a childlike giggle and looked the human straight in the eye. “You’ll have to catch me to find out!” he teased before submerging deep into the tank like a torpedo. Link quickly put his face gear back on and dived in after him. He swam around the tank, searching carefully through the kelp and rocks. It took some time, but eventually Link found the merman hiding in a patch of seaweed, blending in rather well with his green color and dark stripes. Link swam towards him as fast as he could, alarming Rhett into retreating. The two continued chasing each other around the tank until Link managed to latch onto the merman’s back with his arms and legs. Rhett smiled brightly as he attempted to wriggle free from the rascally human’s grasp, but Link just squeezed him tighter. Link wore a devilish smile as his hands inched towards Rhett’s ribs. His fingers lightly twiddled and pinched at the merman’s sensitive skin, making Rhett writhe wildly. Link’s legs loosened a bit from all the movement. Rhett twisted around until the two faced each other. The obvious joy on the merman’s face filled Link with relief, and something else that he just couldn’t place. Rhett stared lovingly at the amused human, whose legs were wrapped around his waist. He felt something stir within him that he hadn’t felt in centuries.

The merman gently took Link’s hands one by one. Link unwrapped his legs from the majestic being and followed as Rhett leisurely swam towards the center of the tank. Rhett released the human’s hands, and then began swirling himself around the human. His movements were so graceful, Link couldn’t help feeling mesmerized. His eyes never left the beautiful merman perform his underwater dance with practiced ease. Eventually, Link found himself trying to imitate Rhett’s movements, swaying his hips and moving his legs as if they were fins flowing sensually to the rhythm Rhett was moving to. Rhett smiled with a blush as he watched the human’s movements. In a swift motion, he snatched Link by the waist and pulled him up above the surface. As they breached through the water, Rhett tossed his companion into the air, spinning him in mid-air like professional ice-skaters before plunging back into the water with Link in his arms.

“What was that?!?!” Link asked once they floated back to the surface. Link laughed in amazement and hugged the merman tight. Rhett blushed nervously at the question.

“It’s… Well, it’s a kind of… dance… that’s been a… tradition of my kind for generations,” he answered, trying to dance around the direct truth.

“What, like a mating ritual dance or something?” Link joked. Rhett immediately froze, blushing up a storm. He ducked his head, avoiding eye contact as best as he could.

Link saw through his actions, and stopped laughing. He suddenly felt like a jerk for making it sound like Rhett’s people’s customs were nothing more than a joke. He waded a bit closer to the embarrassed merman, and with a lower voice he asked, “What… happens if the… dance is reciprocated?”

“I… Y-Y-You… We… Um… I mean… Nothing very… It just means… Like a…”

Link leaned in, kissing the merman on the cheek. Rhett stopped stammering and shot wide eyes at the smiling human before him. Rhett felt like he was on the brink of melting. His tail worked overtime just to ensure that he stayed afloat. His blushing intensified for every second he spent staring at Link’s charming smile. It took all of his power to refrain jumping at the man and kissing him senselessly. Link started leaning in once more, but the sound of his phone alarm stopped him from carrying his intentions forward.

“It’s… the end of my shift,” Link muttered. “I, uh… I had a lot of fun.” He waded to the edge of the tank, never taking his solemn eyes away from Rhett’s. He removed and put away his gear before returning with his clothes on. He looked to the tank again, seeing that Rhett had not moved. “Stay safe, okay?” Link said, kneeling on the very edge of the tank. The merman urged himself to move closer to Link, who waited for him eagerly. The moment he was close enough, Rhett hoisted himself up to Link’s level. The brunet reached forward, grazing his hand on the back of the merman’s neck. He barely nudged the merman’s face closer when Rhett pushed himself the rest of the way up, pressing his lips flush against Link’s. They stayed still, holding the kiss as long as they could, but they relaxed into it so much that Rhett’s arms could barely hold him up anymore. He broke off the kiss and lowered himself back in the tank, leaving his beaming face above the water.

“Goodnight,” the merman murmured. Link smiled back tenderly before standing back up to leave. He looked back at the merman just as he closed the gate.

The moment Link left Rhett’s sight, the merman sank into the water. The trout were cheering wildly for him and congratulating him on the requited feelings. Rhett was so ecstatic he grabbed a bunch of the excited fish and hugged them tight.

A sudden plunge into the water interrupted the happy commotion, and Rhett was more than excited to see the human return so soon. The merman rushed up to greet his love. His heart was pounding and he couldn’t wipe the silly grin from his face. The human moved slowly through the water with the heavy gear weighing him down. Rhett grabbed his hands and pulled him up for a kiss.

The human’s strong hands seized the merman’s neck before he got too close. The grip grew tighter and tighter until his nails created indents on the merman’s skin. Rhett gasped at the pain, accidentally swallowing water while doing so. He shot confused, frightened eyes at the man under all the scuba gear. The features he saw behind the mask, and Rhett choked on more water when he made the realization.

This man wasn’t Link.

Rhett struggled to writhe out of the man’s grasp. He was weak from the water that entered his lungs, but he wasn’t going to let that stop him. The man reached for Rhett’s tail, but the merman whipped it out of the way, striking the human in the process. Once the man’s hand was no longer on Rhett’s neck, the merman whacked the stranger with his tail again before heading for the surface for air. He took a brief moment to cough some water out of his lungs while the human was still fazed underwater.

Rhett’s reprieve was over when he was suddenly yanked back into the water. The man pulled a condensed rope-like item out of his sleeve and tried attaching it to the merman, but Rhett wriggled free and whipped the net away. He circled the human like a ravenous shark, swimming as fast as a striking harpoon. He clawed at and scratched the enemy as his circle grew smaller and smaller in circumference. The man tried escaping, but Rhett struck him at every attempt. With a lucky swipe of his heavy tail, the tube connecting the human to his air supply detached from the mask. As water suddenly entered the stranger’s lungs, he swam uncoordinatedly towards the surface. Rhett licked his lengthening canines as his predatory instincts came into play. He dragged the enemy down fiercely and sank his teeth into his shoulder. The human shrieked into the water, quickly becoming intoxicated by the merman’s venomous bite. The stranger’s determination barely overtook his increasing weakness. He shoved and kicked the ferocious beast away from him before struggling to rise to the surface. Hurt from the blow, Rhett doubled over, inadvertently letting the human escape.

Rhett knew the stranger was from the Facility, and he felt his freedom and happiness slipping away from him by the second. He wasn’t safe at the aquarium anymore.

He swam to the surface and watched the stranger waddle away as quickly as his weakened body could move. Rhett hoped he and anyone else from the Facility would never come back, but he knew that wasn’t going to happen. All he could do for now was wish for morning to come sooner.


	6. Chapter 6

Rhett stayed up all night, keeping himself on high alert in case any of those Facility goons showed up again. He was relieved that no further attempts to kidnap him were made that night, but was worried that they may be planning something harder for him to break free of… and that terrified him.

The very second he spotted Link enter the exhibit, his anxiety immediately exploded from his mouth. “LINK!! YOU NEED TO GET ME OUT OF HERE!!”

“What?!”

“NOW!!!!”

“Wait, wait, WAIT! What’s going on?!” Link shouted, shutting Rhett up for a moment. The frantic merman grabbed Link’s ankle with great desperation. He pulled his face up to the human’s leg and snuggled it for comfort. “Rhett? What’s up with you today?!” Link asked, looking down at the creature at his feet.

“A guy from the Facility broke in last night! He attacked me and… They’re trying to steal me back, Link!”

“What do you mean?!?! One of them broke in last night?!?! How did they –”

“I don’t know, but you can’t leave me alone in here! Do anything you can – take me with you! Anything!! Just take me away from here… I’m not safe here!” Rhett scooted up more on the surface, only the bottom half of his tail was still in the water. Link wriggled free of the merman’s grasp and kneeled before the troubled creature before being pulled into a rough hug.

“Oh gosh, Rhett,” Link panted from the sudden grapple. “I… I don’t really know what to do…” The merman loosened his grip and looked pleadingly into the human’s panicked eyes. “I mean… I can’t just walk out of an aquarium with a 300 pound merman in my arms! Maybe the museum could up the security or… no, that would take too long… and who’s to say they’ll ever believe me if I talked to anyone about it.” Rhett’s panicked state turned into a frown, his eyes never left Link’s for a second. His grip on Link loosened even more, leaving the slightest of touch on his soft, dry skin. “Even if I could get you out, where could I take you?!?!”

“I thought… maybe your dwelling. It worked last time…” Rhett’s voice was much softer and took on more of a somber tone, but it didn’t seem to affect Link.

“But where’s he now?!?! Where’s the guy who housed you?!?! For all we know, he’s probably dead at the hands of your captors!” Link took a moment to breathe, and each inhale and exhale came out loud and heavy. Rhett remained silent, not knowing what to say. He was right… and he didn’t want that fate for either of them, especially his precious Link. The brunet sighed in defeat, coming to a conclusion he was apprehensive about considering. “Maybe you should go back to the ocean,” he mumbled, “You’ll be safer there.”

Rhett immediately grabbed Link’s shoulders, and his gaze was once again filled with fear. “No, Link… please! I can’t go back there! They might go after you in my absence!” He wrapped his arms around the human again, cradling his soft, dark hair with one hand.

They stayed in that position for a while, both lost in restless thought and cherishing the moment they had while they still could.

“Maybe…” Link spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. “Maybe we could… find some sort of hideout for us… like a cave or something.” Rhett perked up at the idea, eyes widening and glistening. “No one would know where we are, and we would be safe! At least temporarily!” Link hugged the merman tighter, nuzzling against the silky, green skin of Rhett’s neck. He pecked Rhett’s cheek and backed away far enough to see Rhett’s entire face. “We’ll need some time to figure it out. I might need the weekend to plan everything out.”

Rhett’s smile fell at the idea of spending just another night alone, but nodded anyway. If there was a chance at them escaping, he needed to be patient and trust Link even if it meant staying up and alert for another forty eight hours. “Okay…” the merman mumbled.

Link brought his hand to Rhett’s chin, lifting it gently until their gazes met again. “Hey… It’ll be okay.” He gave the merman a soft kiss to seal the promise, making heat rise to Rhett’s face. “Go get some rest. You’ll need it.”

Rhett shuffled back into the tank. As much as he trusted Link, a horrible feeling of doubt shrouded over his thoughts. He just had a feeling that something wouldn’t work out, or Link wouldn’t figure everything out in time. What if the Facility caught them? What would happen to him? What would happen to Link? Rhett tried to shake those thoughts as he descended further into the tank. The trout tried asking him about what just happened, but Rhett ignored them and swam directly for his cave. He was too concerned about what could happen to think about anything else… and if him staying up all weekend would lower the chance of failure, then he was determined to try. Link told him to rest, so that was what he planned to do. He took a deep breath from the air pocket at the end of his tunnel, and then curled up along the wall. He emptied his troubling thoughts as best as he could and tried to get to sleep.

Meanwhile, on the surface of the exhibit, Link was fast at work with nearly a hundred tabs open on his phone. He was looking up contact information, geographical maps, even mining maps, hoping to find a sanctuary fit for the two of them while in hiding. He began considering the idea of escaping to another state, or even running off to Mexico with his aquatic companion. Though the big question was… how would he manage to move Rhett? Even moving him out of the museum would take a lot of work before moving him into a vehicle.

“But how long can he go before he gets dehydrated?” Link asked himself. He looked back into the water, hoping that Rhett was able to sleep at least somewhat peacefully.

As the hours passed, Rhett continued teetering on the edge of consciousness and Link did all he could to formulate some sort of plan, all the while taking care of the trout. He found it strange to find their appetites not being up to it today. Are you guys worried too? Link thought to himself as he watched the multitudes of fish by the entrance of Rhett’s cave.

It was only a matter of time for his phone alarm to signal the end of his shift for that long, stressful day. Link called for Rhett, who promptly but solemnly arose from the water. The human kneeled down to the merman, his expression displaying every worry and thought filling his head.

“Did you come up with anything?” Rhett asked, his voice reduced to a soft whisper. Link tilted the merman’s chin up, placing the softest of kisses right beside Rhett’s lips. The action reduced the merman’s worries down to a fraction, but it didn’t keep the anxiety away for good. He searched for an answer in Link’s questionable expression.

“I… I feel like we’re close… but I’m still gonna need more time, okay?” Link responded, gently caressing Rhett’s silky cheek with his thumb. “Take care of yourself,” he whispered. The merman slid his hand up and cradled the nape of Link’s neck. He took in the essence of Link’s glorious oceanic eyes, gazing into them as if memorizing every pigment. He pushed himself higher from the water’s edge and pulled the human into a one-armed hug.

“You get back here as soon as you can,” Rhett muttered into Link’s ear, pressing his lips against Link’s strangely stubbly cheek afterwards.

“You know I will,” Link spoke back, kissing Rhett’s cheek in return.

The two released each other, though Link didn’t want to head out just yet. He reached out and gently petted the merman’s drenched, emerald hair. The touch brought chills down Rhett’s spine, and he loved every bit of it. They bid each other a good night before Link finally stood and left the exhibit.

Rhett watched him walk away, dreading every step the beautiful human took. He always hated watching his beloved go, but this time he anticipated something far worse than just waiting overnight. As much as he tried to force himself, he just wasn’t ready for whatever plans the Facility could’ve had to break him out.

He stood his guard that evening as best and as diligently as he could. His eyes never left the exhibit’s entrance, and the trout even kept their eyes open on the skies. They had to be ready for anything and everything.

Half the night had passed, and Rhett was starting to feel like tonight was not the night, that he could go back to hiding in his cave. But as soon as he started to descend, he heard little clicks and bolts coming from the entrance. The sudden mechanical sounds jolted his entire body, and he sprang into defense mode. He quickly slipped under the water and moved flat against the tank wall, waiting to strike if and when the intruder entered the water.

Instead, he heard a voice. A familiar voice.

Rhett breached the surface once more, and who was it but Link that broke into the exhibit. The human jogged over to the water’s edge to greet his fellow merman.

“Link?!?! What are you doing here?” Rhett asked, a smile plastered to his face.

“Rhett!! Guess what!! I got a friend to let me borrow a truck!! I know just the place for us to go! Rhett!! We can get you out tomorrow night!!”

“TOMORROW NIGHT?!?!”

“YES!!!” Link jumped into the tank in unadulterated glee, immediately wrapping himself around the ecstatic merman and kissing him harshly as they descended into the water. Rhett carried them to the surface of the water and continued their kiss from there. Link’s mouth attacked Rhett’s with great fervor, and his tongue pushed through the threshold of his silky smooth lips. Rhett gladly fired up his passion, quickly matching with Link’s.

The human found himself quickly melting into the kiss a little more than he expected, as his limbs begin losing grip on his slippery lover. He started getting lightheaded, a bit too quickly to his surprise, as if he was becoming intoxicated by the merman’s passion. His arms fell away from Rhett’s shoulders and dangled gently through the waves. Rhett stopped kissing Link and hoisted his precious human up with all his power, making sure he stayed above the water.

“Hahaha…” Link mumbled groggily, throwing his limp arms over the other’s shoulders. “I guess you were right about the whole… you know, kissing a human into drowning thing…”

“That’s why I’m holding you up – I don’t want you to drown, you crazy human!” Rhett giggled, holding the seemingly boneless human against him while trying to remain afloat.

Link snuggled as close as he could to the merman, giggling softly. “I bet it’s your spit.”

“My what?!” Link stuck his tongue out at Rhett, silently threatening to lick him. “Eugh! Link! Okay, I get it!” Rhett whined, holding the floppy, giggly human at a safe distance. Link put his tongue away, and Rhett held him close again, but was still suspicious of any more sneaky moves Link might pull. The human darted for Rhett’s face again, puffing his lips out hungrily. Rhett was quick to catch him and keep him away. “I think you’ve had enough spit kisses for one night,” the merman advised. Link pouted and settled on Rhett’s shoulder, enveloping him in a wimpy hug instead. Rhett patted the wet clothes that stuck to the human’s back, and hummed a light tune that made Link smile.

“Rhett?”

“Yes?”

“Do… merpeople mate for life?” Link nuzzled against the side of Rhett’s neck, relishing in the ticklish sensation of Rhett’s beard rubbing against his face.

Rhett cradled Link’s head, stroking his wet locks gently as he nodded. “Yeah… we do. Why?”

“Then that means we’ll always be there for each other… through our highs and our lows… right?”

“What do you…” Rhett stopped mid-thought and recalled the dance they performed. He remembered how his heart fluttered when Link began reciprocating the dance, moving his body in such beautiful ways. And then they kissed afterwards. He had never felt so alive. He blushed at the wonderful memory. “I didn’t think… you would’ve wanted to take that seriously.”

“Of course I do, Rhett…” Link purred, feeling himself slowly sober up. “I care about you. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be so invested in trying to get you out of here.”

“I appreciate it, Link…”

Now with much more strength than he had moments ago, Link leaned towards Rhett’s face again. Rhett twitched in defense. “It’s okay, Rhett. No spit this time,” Link assured with a laugh. The merman trusted him, and craned his neck to have their lips meet once more.

“It’s a shame you can’t stay,” Rhett purred.

“I’ve probably stayed too long already,” Link commented. “I still have stuff I gotta do to prepare for tomorrow night.” The two smiled at each other, excitedly anticipating their escape. “Once we’re outta here, we’ll have much more time to be together. Just for now, I need you to be strong. I know you can do it.”

Rhett nodded, never taking his eyes off Link’s. The human exited the tank, completely soaked. Before heading out, he looked back at the magnificent being in the water and smiled.

“I’ll see you tomorrow!” Rhett called, careful not to be too loud.

“Goodnight!” Link called back, blowing a kiss to the merman before exiting the exhibit.

~*~

“Tomorrow night…” whispered a man’s voice just outside the museum. The mysterious man watched the brunet caretaker enter his own vehicle soaked to the bone. As Link drove past, the man kept motionless and silent in his own vehicle, holding his phone steady against his chest. “We’ll be ready.”


	7. Chapter 7

The next day at the museum was pretty quiet an uneventful. Rhett and the trout figured it was because those Facility goons wouldn’t dare try to break in during the light of day. Because of this, Rhett felt a bit more relaxed and stood down from his incessant guarding duty and mused with the trout about all the things he and Link would do in the free world.

“But…” one of the trout interrupted, “how much could you really do together?” Rhett and the others paused and looked at the single fish questioningly. “I mean, he’s a human, Rhett… and -”

“So what if I don’t have legs? We’ve had great times before and that’s never been an issue!” Rhett argued.

“But what if your hideout doesn’t have enough water for the two of you to play around in?”

Rhett’s expression dropped. His furrowed brows relaxed to their normal positions as he gaped at the trout. He didn’t even consider that part of the escape, but he hoped Link did. He trusted him and his decisions. Besides, Link said a friend of his was coming tonight to help them escape. They didn’t have time to make any revisions to their plan.

“I trust him,” the merman remarked in a sharp whisper. “He’s not an idiot. I know he found a place with enough water.”

“I’m just saying…” the trout defended, “Just because he found a place for you two to hide, that doesn’t mean he found an entire lake for you. For all you know, the best he could find only has a small stream nearby - maybe a large puddle for you to sit in.” The merman was angry now, turning his scowl away from the fish. “Just… Don’t set your expectations high. It’s a safe house, not a vacation home.”

Rhett’s shoulders slumped as he hung his head in defeat. After brief hesitation, he whipped his tail and swam into his cave, stunning the trout in the waves trailing rapidly behind him.

Rhett stayed in his cave for the remainder of the day. A couple trout came in from time to time to check on the poor, brooding merman, but he wasn’t in the mood for conversation. He kept his running thoughts to himself up until dusk.

He moseyed his way back to the main part of the tank the moment the sun set. He started moving to the surface, but moved slowly due to his current state of mind. He almost forgot what he was on guard for.

But then something plopped into the water, startling the merman and a couple of the trout around him. He moved towards the tiny object, looking at it curiously. It looked like an orange fish about the size of Rhett’s hand, but regardless of its wild flapping motions it appeared lifeless. As he stayed transfixed by the strange object, something else shot into the water. Before Rhett could react, the launched object expanded and wrapped around the merman in a matter of seconds. He wriggled and writhed, trying to free himself from the tightly knit net, but that only seemed to tighten it more.

“What is this?!?!” Rhett yelped as his ability to squirm diminished rather quickly. He soon felt himself being heaved from the tank, elevated by a small crane of some sort. His head began to throb as he hung from his tail, swinging back and forth like a pendulum. There were men everywhere - in the exhibit, around the tank, and right outside the habitat fence. A couple of them shouting demands at the others.

“We got ‘im,” one of them said into a communication device. Right on cue, the crane neck rotated, moving the captured merman towards the road beside the museum. Rhett recognized the vehicle below him. He remembered that confounded mobile tank oh so well. He shouted as loud as he could, but the material of the net muffled the noise a little too well for anyone to hear it.

“This way!” Link directed, pointing at their next right. His friend, Chase, drove the truck in the indicated direction. He tried to keep the truck’s movements as smooth as possible so the water in the kiddie pool in the bed of his truck wouldn’t spill. Of course to avoid curious eyes, they tarped the truck bed prior to starting their mission.

“And then it’s… Whoa, is there construction going on over here? I didn’t see a sign or anything,” Chase commented. They gaped at the many trucks ahead, focusing most on the rotating crane. The hook at the end hoisted up a mysterious bag sort of thing. Link took notice of the size and shape of the thing. His eyes widened at the sight of it wriggling all over the place like a bass on a fishing line.

“Move the truck back,” Link whispered, forcing Chase’s hand onto the gear shift.

“What?! Why?!”

“Just move the truck back, okay?!?!” Without further question, Chase shifted to reverse and moved far enough back that the truck wouldn’t be noticed. “Turn off the headlights,” Link whispered. Chase followed his order and gave Link a questioning look.

“What’s going on?” Chase asked, matching his volume level with Link’s.

Link pointed up at the dangling bag as it slowly lowered into a trailer tank. “Up there! They got Rhett!”

“You mean the Facility people? How do you know?”

Link changed the direction he was pointing in, aiming his finger at a man in a suit and sunglasses by the edge of the museum exterior. He was talking into a phone, seemingly unaware of Link and Chase’s presence. “Because that’s the guy who threatened me the other day. I think he’s their leader, if not one of the higher-ups.”

“So they got here before us?! Did they know?!”

“God, I hope not. If that’s the case, we’re screwed!”

A couple of men slammed the top of the trailer tank shut, keeping the poor, restrained merman inside. Link’s heart ached at the very thought of Rhett being alone, scared, and helpless in that cold, dark tank. He wished he was in there with him so at least Rhett wouldn’t have to go through the torture alone. More men from inside the exhibit scurried outside through one of the back doors. They climbed aboard the main truck, some traveling with the 'boss’, and some piled into a van. The two guys manning the crane already began leaving. It didn’t take long for the Facility’s vehicles to make their escape, leaving the trailer tank to head out last.

“We’re gonna follow that,” Link whispered, switching the gear to drive before Chase was ready. He scrambled, getting his hands on the wheel and his foot on the pedal. Within seconds, they began their pursuit.

They followed the trailer tank to what looked like a high-security prison. Link made sure that Chase parked at a safe distance away from everything. They watched six men fetch the merman, carrying the wriggling creature inside.

“I hope you have a plan…” Chase whispered, ducking nervously in the driver’s seat. They noticed another man come out of the truck that was attached to the trailer tank. He seemed quite young compared to the other Facility members, and was dressed more like a doctor due to the white coat. What really caught Link’s attention was his fluffy brown hair and the slight beard on the man’s face. Link glanced over at his friend, mentally finding similarities in his features.

“I got a plan alright.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter contains violence and some sort of torture, so tread lightly!

“Get it in here!” A man shouted over the loud humming of the machinery and the bustling of the other scientists in the room. A crowd of grunts entered the lab with the merman all tied and netted up. Rhett tried to speak, but the rag tied over his mouth made it difficult. The men yanked him over to the main table, which had a large hole cut into the top and was adorned with mechanical clamps and thick straps. The workers all scrambled to strap down the wriggling merman, holding him down and clamping his arms against the table. It took a lot of them to maneuver some sharp-studded belts around the slippery tail, making sure the studs were pressed against the skin.

“AAGH!” Rhett wailed once the rag was removed from his mouth. “If you think you’re getting any information from me you’ve got another thing coming!” He bared his sharp fangs at the people around him.

“Well, we’ll see about that!” challenged one of the scientists, who moved towards the feisty merman with some sort of squishy substance. Rhett readied a bite, but bit into the substance instead of the man. The spongy mold expanded in his mouth, restraining him from speaking or biting. Three men shoved through the crowd, sticking sensors all over the merman’s body. Other small groups followed, bringing in syringes, phials, jars, and assorted knives and tools.

Rhett’s worried eyes darted all over the room. His heart pounded in confusion and fear as the suction cups were slapped onto his slippery skin. He felt a sudden sharp pain in his arm, and then his tail and shoulder, as syringes removed samples of his blood. He wiggled violently, trying to shake off the sharp instruments, and groaned as loudly as he could. A rather large goon thumped the merman hard in response, knocking the wind out of him. The men returned taking their samples and made way for the next wave of scientists to get what they wanted from him.

The sight of the strange, bladed instruments terrified the poor, helpless merman as they prepared their stations. He felt something making small incisions on his tail, and some cutting thin samples of the top layer of his skin. As minuscule their cuts were, the marks they made left the creature screaming in agony. He could taste his own venom soaking into the spongy gag as he tried desperately to breathe in more air than his nose could get.

That’s when he felt the scorching heat blemishing the skin on his tail. Heat lamps were beaming down on him, quickly drying him out. Rhett shoved the device out of his mouth and screeched like a banshee, bursting the eardrums of everyone in the room. Pleased with their reactions, Rhett wriggled his body, chafing his drying skin against the restraints, as he screeched once more.

The bottom part of his tail got loose and sprung free, immediately whipping the appendage at nearby goons. He continued bounding and wiggling to get the rest of his tail free. He noticed a couple grunts scurrying into the room with pads and wires. One of them grabbed the pads and rubbed them together, charging them up with a terrifying snap of lightning and a deafening tone. Rhett readied another screech when the grunt pressed the pads against the merman’s body, electrocuting him into a deep sleep.

Hours later, Rhett awoke in another room, lying haphazardly on a puddle. He was exhausted, dried up, and aching all over. He tried to shake his arms free, but the restraints around his wrists proved his attempts futile.

Approaching footsteps caught the merman’s attention, and his senses leaped to high alert. A young, slightly bearded man in a lab coat entered the room. At a quick glance, he seemed new to the Facility. Rhett figured it would be easy to manipulate him, scare him, or do anything to keep him from any further pain. The man approached carefully, and Rhett could see the slight tremors of his hands. With great confidence, the merman growled a warning, earning a step back from the nervous scientist. Rhett bore his eyes into the short man’s wide, brown gaze, giving off threatening signs to the human.

“BACK!!” Rhett growled, jolting closer to his enemy.

“Wait, no… You’re –”

“I SAID GET BACK!” the merman barked, moving even closer to the shaken man.

“I’m sorry, I just… You have the wrong idea!” The human brushed the light brown curls away from his eyes, and then knelt down to the creature with slight hesitation.

“No, you have the wrong idea, you treacherous beast,” Rhett growled, a threatening resonance grumbling through his deep, baritone voice.

“No!! Shh! I’m… I’m a friend of Link!!”

A sudden spark perked him up at the name, but he still had his suspicions on the stranger. “Prove it!”

“I – I… We have a truck just outside the building! We frickin’ knocked a guy out so I could get in here!”

“Then why are you here and not Link?!” Rhett’s brows furrowed in worry at the young man, hoping nothing happened to his precious human.

“He said the guys here would recognize him, and the whole plan would be ruined! Now, quick! We need to get you out of here!”


	9. Chapter 9

With a final shove, Chase managed to push Rhett onto some sort of stretcher. The heavy creature weighed down the support structure just a bit, but it seemed to be able to hold the merman’s weight – at least for a little while. Rhett looked around, noticing the nylon straps along the sides of the stretcher.

“Should these be on me or…?”

“That’s probably a good idea,” Chase replied, rushing over to Rhett’s side and fastening him snugly onto the mat. “We should also think about making it look like, you know, that we’re not trying to escape!”

“What do you mean?” Rhett asked, furrowing his brows in sudden discomfort. Chase scoured the room for equipment. He soon returned with handfuls of random things. Rhett particularly noticed the spongy substance, which Chase immediately positioned near the merman’s mouth.

“I’m sorry, but I have to do this. I promise you’ll be okay.” Rhett glared into Chase’s eyes, only seeing panic and worry. He looked back at the sponge and sighed. He opened his mouth as wide as he could manage, and Chase gently inserted the substance inside. Rhett winced at how the substance quickly filled his mouth, keeping him from breathing well. Chase apologized again before slapping suction cups, needles, and other equipment onto the merman’s skin. He even placed some gauze wrap around one of Rhett’s arms, as if he had just performed some kind of surgery there. Rhett groaned in discomfort, but Chase patted him in reassurance.

“Okay, I think we’re ready!” Chase enthused, grabbing the handle by Rhett’s head. He leaned closer to the merman and whispered, “Now remember: the exit closest to Link is by the southeast exit by the underwater examination room. I need you to act as exhausted as you can, possibly even unconscious, so just try to keep still no matter what happens.” Rhett glared angrily at the young man, mumbling incoherently through the substance in his mouth. “Or do you want me to make it easier and just tranquilize you?” Rhett’s eyes grew wide, and he immediately relaxed on the stretcher, letting his dried up tail dangling from the end.

With that, Chase pushed Rhett through the door and into the hallway. He grimaced at the rust collecting around the edges of the metallic walls, but then sharpened up when he saw a worker approaching from around a corner.

“Miles!” shouted the stranger, making Chase’s shoulders shudder. The large, husky man stopped right before the stretcher and bore his gaze straight into Chase’s. “Where do you think you’re going with this specimen? I can’t imagine you’ve already finished your tests.”

Chase gulped and answered with a slightly nasally voice, “I’m, uh, bringing him to the underwater examination room while awaiting results. We should probably, you know, keep him healthy and alive if we’re –”

“Yeah, yeah, fine. Also, you should do something about that cold, son. This is a science facility, and we can’t have our people here coughing and sneezing on our work.” Chase frowned in confusion at the man’s accusation. “We have important confidential military work here, so we gotta be careful. Because you’re new I’ll let you off with a warning… for now. Finish what you’re doing and go home. I don’t want to see you back here until those sinuses are clear.”

“Y-Yes, sir,” Chase choked out, clearing out his throat with a forced cough. The man left, eyeing the young man and the seemingly unconscious creature. Chase then made for the end of the hallway as quickly as he could. He noticed little quirks of motion in the merman’s chest and stopped the stretcher.

“What are you doing?!” he whispered, removing the sponge from Rhett’s mouth. The merman let out quiet little chuckles. “What is so funny?!”

“Sorry… That voice you were using was so ridiculous. You’re not very good at this sort of thing are you?” Rhett whispered back, holding back his giggles as best as he could.

“Well, for your information, I’ve never done anything like this before. I’m not really… one to get in risky situations.”

“Oh, well, Link’s a little scamp,” Rhett added, smirking boastfully at the human with a raised eyebrow. “He’s my little scamp.”

“Okay, okay, I get it. We’ll get you back to your rambunctious little scamp hopefully before anyone catches us.” Chase pushed the sponge back into Rhett’s mouth. At first, the merman jumped right back into attack mode, but then he calmed himself down when he remembered the point of their mission. He relaxed back to his ‘unconscious’ state and Chase continued pushing the stretcher to the end of the hallway. He followed the signs that led him to the underwater examination room, but he couldn’t help but feel like he was in a labyrinth of halls. The longer they traveled, the more his confidence diminished, and the antsier and drier Rhett was becoming. They encountered a couple other Facility goons as they attempted to navigate to their room. Chase wanted to ask them for directions, but decided against it, believing it could blow his cover.

Soon enough, Chase saw a blinking red light near the dark end of a hallway. Once he was near enough, he recognized it as an exit sign… and right underneath it was a heavy industrial door! Chase sighed in relief. The pressure and his rising cleithrophobia had been getting to him, and he was so thankful to be just seconds away from freedom.

“Hey!” a voice shouted. Chase turned on his heels to see who but the scientist he had been pretending to be, along with two grunts. “There he is!!!”

Chase swiveled in a panic, scurrying to the door as fast as he could with stretcher in hand, bouncing with every frantic step. However, those grunts caught up with him quick. One snatched him by the shoulder and one stopped the stretcher from moving. The scientist caught up and began tugging on the jacket Chase was wearing, not as to remove it, but as if searching for something. With all the attention going to the curly-haired imposter, Rhett spat out the spongy substance and bit the hand of the only grunt in reach, making the man cry out and fall to his knees. The man’s distress caught the sudden attention to the merman, who stunned the others with a piercing shriek.

“GAHH!!” chase yelped, flailing out of the men’s grasp. With his hands squeezing his ears shut, he shuffled to the exit and shoved his entire body weight onto the door, shoving the heavy metal door open. He pulled the stretcher through the door as Rhett continued with his disabling screech. Once the stretcher was out of the way, Chase slammed the door shut and looked around frantically until he found something that would work to his plan. When he found something that would work, he sprinted over to the large dumpster nearby. He shoved it with all his might toward the exit, hoping the guys inside wouldn’t get it open before he got there. Just a sliver moved over the hinges before the door was being thrusted open from the inside. Thankfully, the opening wasn’t wide enough for one of them to slip through, and Chase continued pushing the dumpster until it impeded the door from opening.

“Okay!! Quick, quick, quick!!!” Rhett called, his anxiety rising by the second. Chase rushed over to the merman and pushed him as fast as he could to the street. A loud siren emanated from behind them, making the two of them look back at the Facility in fear.

“Shoot! They pulled an alarm on us!!” Chase panicked, still pushing the stretcher down the street.

“What is that?! What does that mean?!?!”

“It means we gotta get outta here!!” Chase moved faster, ignoring the pleas of his aching feet. Soon, his truck was in sight under the darkness under a patch of trees. The sound of the motor starting empowered Chase to keep moving forward. Rhett spotted the dark-haired human and smiled with a heavy sigh of relief. Link released the hatch of the truck bed by the time they made it. The two of them hurried to get the merman unstrapped, and then carefully hoisted him onto the truck.

“Link!” Rhett enthused, reaching for his beloved human. Link ignored his request for contact.

“Later, Rhett! Get in the pool before you dehydrate!!” he ordered as he ran to grab the tarp. The merman scooted back with what little strength he had, and then tossed himself haphazardly into the full kiddie pool. Once Link was sure Rhett was okay, he and Chase folded up the stretcher and tossed it into the truck. They quickly pulled the tarp over the entire truck bed, fastening it in the back. Link stopped beside the truck bed for a moment while Chase ran to the driver’s seat. “You’ll be okay, man. We’re getting out of here!” He noticed a small movement from under the edge of the tarp, and found a tiny tip of a green finger poking through. Link took the chance to kiss the little digit before climbing into the truck on the passenger’s side.

The sirens were still sounding, and some people started making their way outside the building from the other numerous exits. Chase reversed as carefully and quickly as possible, before vacating the premises with a K turn so no one would see the truck. Everyone in the truck held their breaths in anticipation, and Rhett cuddled up in the tiny pool in the dark. Link kept his eyes on the rearview mirrors, sometimes just sticking his head out the window briefly to make sure they weren’t being followed. After a couple miles and the coast seemed clear, Link let out a huge sigh of relief.

“How’re we doing?” Chase asked, keeping his eyes on the road and his hands death-gripping the wheel.

“I think we’re okay for now,” Link replied. Chase released his grip on the wheel a bit, now that his nerves could calm down for a bit. “I guess you guys got caught?”

“The dude we knocked out showed up and ratted me out! And we thought we had him covered!”

“Apparently not I guess…” Link tapped his fingers on his lap, hoping things would get better once they get to the mine.

The drive took quite a while, and Link had Chase stop every hour or so to check on Rhett, who was napping as he slowly rehydrated in the tiny pool. Eventually, Chase gave them each a walkie talkie from his emergency kit and had them use it instead of stopping every forty miles. That way, they could check on each other without the risk of stopping. He had to refrain from rolling his eyes every time they cooed at each other through their devices.

Eventually, they made it to their destination. Chase parked the truck as close to the abandoned mine as possible, and Link burst through the door to free his precious merman. The moment he saw the emerald creature under the tarp, his eyes teared up in joy.

“Come here, come here!” Link cried, beckoning Rhett with his arms spread out to him. The merman crawled closer on his elbows, and then lifted his torso out of the kiddie pool to give the man a hug. “I missed ya, buddy! Everything’s gonna be all right!”

“At least for now,” added Chase, who opened the back of the truck and readied the stretcher for the heavy merman. Before getting off the truck, Rhett took a good look at their hideout. He saw a rocky, yet grassy terrain with large mounds of rock and dirt, one of which had a round-ish hole leading deep into the hill. Partly flooded tracks led their way inside. The traces of water around this strange hole made Rhett burn with curiosity as to just how much water was in that dark cavern.

“Come on, Rhett! Those goons could catch up to us at any time, so we gotta get into that mine and Chase has to leave before they could possibly get here,” Link called. He and Chase waited for him at the edge of the bed ramp, stretcher ready to carry the merman. Rhett hurdled over the kiddie pool wall, and then rolled playfully to the end of the truck bed, where Chase and Link helped him climb onto the stretcher. They were easy on the restraints, knowing he probably didn’t need to be completely strapped in just to go through a mine entrance.

“This place looks kinda spooky,” Rhett commented, donning a tiny frown as Chase and Link guided the stretcher towards the mine.

“Are you sure you don’t wanna just go back to the ocean?” Link asked, placing a hand on his wet shoulder.

“Not if you can’t go with me,” Rhett replied, nuzzling against the human’s hand. “I’d miss you too much.”

“Okay then! Into the mines we go!” Chase added. Link chuckled at his friend’s reaction as they approached the entrance. “Are you sure about this place, Link?”

“Yeah, I think we can make do with this place… for a while at least.” Link stopped the cart and looked to Chase. “I think I got this. Could you start grabbing for the food and luggage?” The curly-haired boy nodded to his friend and trotted back to the truck, and Link continued following the tracks into the mine.

The deeper they went, the darker it got. Link decided to let Chase catch up. Once he did, Link led them down with the flashlight setting on his phone. The three of them followed the tracks until Link’s light hit a deep flooded pit. Rhett looked questioningly into the murky water, and then looked back at Link with furrowed brows.

“It’s okay, Rhett. When I looked it up, it said they mainly found sodium here, so the water should have mostly sodium in it, along with wear from the mine.” Link kept his hand on Rhett’s shoulder. He could feel the merman already drying up, and hoped that Rhett would be okay with this place… as this was the best he could find.

“Okay, I trust you, Link,” Rhett answered softly. With that, Chase and Link removed the straps from Rhett’s body, letting him roll into the water with a splash. The two watched the water with bated breath. After about half a minute, Rhett breached the water’s surface with a vigorous shake of his head.

“How is it?” Chase called.

“It’s fine… I mean, it’s not the ocean, but hey I feel great!”

“Oh, good!” Link enthused, applauding with a sigh of relief.

Link then set up a couple lanterns and such around the chamber, illuminating the place with more of a home-y flair. Rhett seemed to like it too, as he would bask at the shimmering glow from his underwater view. The faint light helped him even see deeper into the pit, and the lost mine carts at the bottom filled him with intrigue.

“That’s the last of it,” announced Chase as he brought back the last bag of stolen crawdads, along with Link’s luggage case.

“Thank you so much, Chase… You really helped us out today.” Link went over and gave his friend a hug.

“No problem… though I’m sure at least one of those goons must’ve seen my truck, so I’m probably on their watch now too.”

“Sorry about that,” Link mumbled, guilty of bringing him into this dumb mess.

“I’ll figure it out. Don’t worry about it. And I’ll make sure they stay off your trail.”

“Thanks, man.” The two shared calm, friendly smiles before Chase packed up the stretcher and started heading out. “Also, uh, Rhett!” the merman rose from the water at the sound of his name. “It was nice to meet you.”

“Same to you, friend!” Rhett called, waving to the departing young man. It was then that Rhett and Link noticed that it had gotten dark outside. Link laid a couple towels onto the mine floor and lied down beside the pit.

“I guess it’s time to hit the hay, Rhett,” the brunet said with a yawn. He curled up on his makeshift bed and smiled at the approaching merman.

“I don’t know what that means, but I think we should go to sleep.”

Link chuckled at Rhett’s reiteration, and wished him a good night before turning over on his preferred side. He heard a splash, and then something move beside him. He felt the wet, yet warm creature snuggle up behind him, spooning him with his long, silky tail. Two green, striped arms wormed their way around him as a pair of lips pressed against the nape of his neck.

“Good night, Rhett,” Link whispered with a grin.

“Good night, Link.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains mild violence and some cursing. PG-13

“Still can’t reach him?” Rhett asked as he leaned against the edge of the flooded pool. Link dialed Chase’s number one last time, hanging up at the sound of a busy signal for the seventh time this month. They’d been hiding out for weeks, thankfully without any encounters from people of the Facility. Link thought they were probably in the clear at the moment, but it was still risky. Clearly their spot had been working for them… except their food supply was quickly diminishing to the point where they had to start rationing their meals. Even so, it wouldn’t be long until Rhett ran out of crawdads… and that worried Link the most, regardless of how many times Rhett said he could manage a couple days without food.

Link sighed in defeat. “Nothing,” he replied. “He must’ve gotten a new phone and number or something to get off those guys’ trail… At least, I hope that’s the case. I’d hate to find out that something happened to him because of us.” He reached over and caressed Rhett’s soft, damp face. “You don’t think the ocean would be better for you? I mean, you’d be free again… back to your family… your friends… You’d never have to deal with this shit ever again.”

Rhett’s eyebrows furrowed. He grabbed the hand Link kept on his face, pressing it against his lips. “Another century in the sea would mean nothing without you.”

Link’s heart skipped a beat at Rhett’s words, and he fought the tears threatening to build in his eyes. He never truly thought about just how much Rhett cared for him, and Link’s heart ached at the sincerity behind the merman’s words. He kept himself from clenching his chest at the agonizing pain he felt within him.

Without saying anything, Link wrapped his arms around Rhett’s shoulders, caring not for the water on Rhett’s skin. He eventually released him and took another glance at the nearly empty bag of crawdads. He then took in the sight of his precious merman. Regardless of the optimistic sparkle in those turquoise eyes, his skin was slightly wrinkled and had tinges of light reddish brown in places. He felt that ache eating at him again.

“You sure you’re okay?” Link asked, his voice slightly sullen at the heartbreaking sight.

“I’m fine,” Rhett assured. “You shouldn’t have to keep worrying about me.”

“But…”

Rhett took a hold of Link’s face, cupping his jaw ever so delicately. “Link… I told you! I can go quite a long time without eating anything… If anything, you’re the one who needs more nourishment…” Link cast his eyes downward, accepting the fact that he himself had been going days without food or drink. “The only thing is,” Rhett continued, “I can’t imagine what could happen to you if you left the den…”

“Rhett…”

“They could hurt you, Link!” Rhett pushed forward and kissed Link on the forehead. He hoisted himself out of the water and curled up around his precious human. Link was putty in Rhett’s hands, and lied down with his back against his broad, greenish-yellow chest. The merman’s tail followed snugly against the curve of the other’s legs, and then he wrapped his arms around Link’s chest as if the man was a large pillow. They remained in that position, snuggled together and damp, consoling each other in silence and warmth.

“Sometimes,” Rhett said in a half-whisper, “I wish I could be a human like you… Then we wouldn’t be in this mess.” Link’s eyes saddened as they focused on one of the green hands caressing his chest. His mind turned their green, webbed, slick skin into more leathery, tan hands. A bit of light brown hairs adorned the backs of them, continuing onto his forearms. He felt a pang of grief, but also a tingle of happiness at the idea. He felt selfish for even considering that to be a good thing.

“But… then we wouldn’t have met,” Link argued, clutching Rhett’s hand against his cheek. He took a moment to bask in the smoothness of his skin. “I’d rather have met you than for you to be something else.”

“Even with this situation?”

Link nodded, subconsciously stroking Rhett’s hand in comfort. Behind him, he felt a slight vibration where Rhett’s stomach was. His eyes went back to that nearly empty crawdad bag again. Without another thought, he stood up and went to grab his backpack.

“Where are you going?” Rhett asked. His heart pounded in worry for what Link may be doing.

“I’m going to get us more food,” Link answered, putting the bag of crawdads in his backpack.

“But Link!!”

“But nothing, Rhett! If we’re gonna live through this we gotta have food!”

Rhett sighed at his partner’s stubbornness. He glanced outside and caught a glimpse of the bright rays of sunshine leaking through their dark den. “You can’t go when the sun falls?”

“No, Rhett, I can’t. The docks close before then.” He stopped at the top of the mine hill, turning back to see Rhett watching him from out of the water. “Stay deep underwater until I get back, okay? If any of those Facility guys end up finding you, it’ll be less likely for them to see you down there.”

The merman stayed put, never removing his uneasy gaze from Link. “Promise me you’ll be back in an hour.”

“An hour tops. I promise.” Rhett nodded with hesitation, hoping his promise would hold true. He then rolled over to the water’s edge and dove into the dark, murky water.

It didn’t take long for Link to get to the docks. Luckily, he made it to a fisherman’s stand that seemed like the last one open for the day. The elder fisherman widened his eyes at the young man scrambling over to him. Even though he was about to close up shop, he graciously sold the rest of his crawdads and a couple pounds of mackerel and herring to his seemingly panicked client. Link thanked him and gave him two $20 bills, and then started heading back home.

He walked cautiously slow, trying to stay clear of the main road. A loud grumble in his stomach tried to convince him otherwise. The faint smell of fries and burgers slowed Link to a halt, and his stomach pleaded again. After a quick inner battle with himself, he checked the time – noting that he had plenty of time to make it home if he stopped for a treat. He was certainly tired of eating roasted fish, and the nearby food smelled oh so good. He made his decision quickly and cut through resident yards to make it to the main road as quickly as possible.

In only about five minutes, he found the source of the tantalizing aroma – a McDonald’s. He wasted no time, barging into the fast food joint. Employees’ eyes were all on him as he shuffled over to the counter, hunching over it with a heavy pant.

“Oh my… are you okay?!” the young lady behind the counter asked. Link smiled sheepishly in response, taking a couple seconds more to catch his breath.

“Yeah, I… I’d just like to order something to go.” Link paused. “I’m kinda in a hurry.”

“Oh, don’t worry, sir. Just let me know what you want and we’ll get it to you as soon as we can.” The young blonde smiled cheerfully and readied her hands on the cash register. “So what can we do for you tonight?”

Link placed and paid for his order, and got his food in record time. He didn’t bother to check if everything was correct; he just thanked the young woman and left, running in the same direction he came from. He looked back at his phone, thankful that he had just enough time to make it back to the mine within the hour like he promised.

There was something about his route that suddenly felt different – like he almost felt lost. The landmarks remained familiar, but the atmosphere changed. He couldn’t tell if it was the sudden chill in the air or the rustling in the trees and bushes around him. Whatever it was, it made Link feel more conscious about his surroundings. Just… he suddenly felt like he wasn’t the only one walking down this dark road. He didn’t dare look behind him. If there was any chance that one of those Facility goons was pursuing him at that moment, the safest thing he could do is to pretend he’s not who they’re looking for.

But then the footsteps sounded closer, and there were more of them. It had to have been about two or three of them in total. Link moved just a little faster, all the while refraining to look back.

They moved faster, running now. The crescendo of their footsteps forced Link to look behind him, confirming Link’s suspicions of his pursuers. He sprinted away in a panic, and the uniformed men hurried after him. Some shouted into their phones for backup.

His turn was still a long while away, and Link had to think of something to throw those guys off his trail. Just as he got an idea, two more guys jumped out at him, knocking him over on the road beside him.

“Hey –” Link protested as a hand pressed hard against his mouth.

“Hold his legs down!” the man above him called.

“Call the boss!” called another behind them. The rest of them caught up to them and quickly grabbed a limb. Link flailed his legs, keeping any of them from grabbing them.

“What’s in the bag?!” the man above Link growled. It took all of Link’s willpower to keep himself from crying. He continued wiggling, hoping for any chance of escape. One of the goons unzipped his backpack and pulled out a mackerel.

“Oh, good god…” he gagged as he dropped the heavy fish onto the asphalt, splatting right beside Link’s face.

“You’re supplying food for the merman, aren’t you?!” the man above Link barked. He squeezed his mouth tighter, earning a squeal from the brunet. “Where is it?! Where are you hiding it?!”

With a lucky swing, Link kicked one of the guys in the nose. The man reeled back, falling to the sidewalk from the blow. Another of them went over to help him. The man above Link looked over at the commotion, subconsciously loosening his grip on Link’s mouth. With rising hope, Link opened his mouth and quickly bit down hard on the man’s fingers. The man grunted and pulled his hand back. Big mistake. Link shook free of the other guys’ grips and stood up, taking the four-pound fish with him. He mustered all his might and whipped the mackerel at the main goon’s head, knocking him face first on the road. The other guys circled around Link cautiously.

“Leave me alone!!!” Link yelled, rushing towards one of them with a powerful swing. The blow knocked the man off balance and pushed him into another of them. Link just kept running, holding his fish like a broadsword, and never looking back. He figured they’d still follow him, so he took a different turn, zigzagging into a patch of woods. He could hear the men in the distance behind him shouting orders left and right. Eventually, Link came across a rocky gorge. The rapids were flowing rampantly, and Link noticed the flow would carry him into the direction of the mine. He paused to see the Facility goons and a couple policemen beyond a vast number of trees. He packed the fish away, zipped his backpack, and jumped into the water. The rapids carried him out of sight by the time his pursuers got there.

“He’s heading downstream,” one of them said into his phone. “Should we go in after him, boss?” After a moment, he closed his phone and turned to the others. “A couple cruisers are coming our way. Keep an eye on him in the meantime. We can’t afford to lose that merman again!”


	11. Chapter 11

Link eventually made his way onto the shore once he recognized some of the area. Luckily, the hills where the mine took place were noticeable from the gorge, which made him worry that those goons would think to go looking there once they arrived. He trudged along as quickly as he could, panting heavily in exhaustion once he got inside.

“Rhett!!” he called, nearly out of breath. The merman quickly rose from the water, gasping at the horrifying sight of his partner.

“My gosh, you’re soaked to the bone! What happened?!” he asked. He readied to get out of the water, but Link stopped him.

“They’re coming, Rhett… Those jerks from that facility place! I don’t know how they were able to find me, but I escaped and now they’re on their way here. We can’t waste any time. We need to get you out of here.”

“What?!”

“And what’s worse, they’ve got the police on their side!” Link explained what the police were before Rhett got a chance to ask. “They’re law enforcement. With them on their side…” Link sighed in defeat. “I think we’re screwed.”

Rhett flopped out of the water, rolling over to comfort Link with a gentle hug. Link didn’t hesitate to hug back, squeezing the wet merman hard against him.

“Don’t worry,” Rhett whispered. “We’ll figure out something.”

“I don’t wanna keep running, Rhett…” Link struggled to say. Rhett grabbed his shoulders firmly.

“We can do it, Link! We did it before and we’ll do it again!” He squished Link’s cheeks with his big wet palms, and planted a kiss on the tip of his nose. “We just have to figure out what our next step is, and quick!”

Link’s brainpower at the moment was limited from his state of panic. He really couldn’t find anything else that would work as well as their private hideaway. There was only one idea he had in mind, but he was stumped as to how to get Rhett out of the mine. He took a deep breath and asked, “How are we gonna get you out, though? You weigh a ton!”

Rhett pondered for a short minute, and then dived right into the murky water. Link squinted over the edge, trying his best to see what the merman was up to. He couldn’t imagine what oddities could’ve been down with Rhett the whole time they stayed there. Eventually, Rhett emerged. His muscles twitched in strain as he hoisted what appeared to be an old mining wagon onto the land. It derailed and tipped over, spilling water out of it that fizzed against the mineral dirt. Link’s eyes went wide at the sight.

“What the crap!! This thing must’ve been down there for ages!!” Link exclaimed, rubbing his hands on the strong, yet slightly soggy surface of the cart’s wooden walls. “How long have you known this was down there?”

“Found it while you were out. I curled up inside of it to stay hidden like you said.”

“I guess you can fit in it then!” Link commented as he hauled the wagon onto its wheels with a clang. He turned to Rhett, who waded patiently in the water with his eyes burning with determination. “Now how do we get you in here is the question…”

Rhett chuckled. “Hardly,” he commented with a smug little grin. With furrowed brows, Link watched as Rhett began to descend into the water. His eyes widened in worry once he realized what Rhett was trying to do.

“Wait, Rhett! Be careful!! I don’t want you to get hurt!”

With that, Rhett darted out of the water like a rocket. Link’s eyes sparkled at the magnificent sight. He remembered the first time he saw the beautiful merman and how incredible he looked. It was like he was in that moment again. If only he knew then how much trouble this creature would be… and how much he would grow to care for him.

Rhett landed a little sloppily into the wagon. The cart shook and rattled as his spine hit the edge. Just a little further to the right and he probably wouldn’t have made it into the cart.

“Are you okay?!” Link asked, holding his breath in anticipation. Rhett stretched his back until it clicked.

“Yeah, I think so,” he replied with a groan. “Will I need some water in here?”

“I’m hoping to snag a truck or something, so whatever’s still in the cart should be fine,” Link answered softly. He got behind the wagon, holding the back end of the wagon.

“You don’t think the voyage will be long?” Rhett asked, craning his head back to look at Link.

“Well, let’s just cross our fingers.”

It didn’t take much time, but it did take a lot of effort to push that cart up the mining rails to the entrance. Rhett gasped at the last glimpse of the evening sky. The bright, golden sun cascaded over the distant horizon like the glimmers of hope the two men held in their hearts.

With worry on his face, Link took his soaked jacket off and draped it over the wagon, protecting the merman from the blazing heat. Rhett snuggled under it, keeping only his head exposed. Link giggled and patted his soft, green locks.

Link took a deep breath and shoved the cart off the rail. It quickly became much more difficult to push while going through the grass, but that wasn’t going to stop Link from rescuing his precious merman. He kept pushing and pushing until he could find the nearest road.

Luckily, they were long gone by the time their pursuers arrived with a large collection of policemen.

“Search the area!” the chief called as the others scattered in search of their runaway. “He can’t be far now.”

“Hey, I found something!” a young policewoman announced. She shone her flashlight down the hill of the dark, musty, abandoned mine. A couple others shuffled over behind her. They grimaced at the wet earth beneath their feet. “How long do you think this has been like this?” the young recruit asked. The others mumbled various guesses as they scanned the walls and treaded deeper into the mine.

“Look!” another announced, pointing to the scoff marks on the tracks beside a gaping pit of polluted water. “They seem fresh…” The group traced the markings back up the hill.

“I bet these came from our target,” the chief commented. “And by the looks of these tracks, they couldn’t have made it far.”


	12. Chapter 12

It didn’t take too long before Link found a backroad. In order to keep Rhett away from the public eye, he hid the wagon behind a row of bushes.

“Ow! Prickly!” Rhett squeaked. Link brushed some of the branches away from Rhett’s eyes before patting his head.

“Try to stay low for a while,” Link whispered. “I’m gonna try to get someone to take us away from here.”

“Sounds good!” Rhett tucked his head into the bushes, trying to ignore the burrs and branches poking at him. Thankfully, Rhett’s green hair blended well with the leaves.

Link stepped away slowly, observing the area. With his foot, he brushed the trail marks out of the grass. Satisfied with his efforts, he moved toward the road and began waving his arms at drivers by. A few cars sped by him, ignoring his pleas. However, it didn’t take long until a large truck pulled over. The window rolled down to reveal a middle-aged woman with aviator sunglasses and wavy brown hair.

“Need help, stranger?” she asked, leaning her arm over the edge of the open window.

“Thank you, yes! Can you take me to Rockaway? It’s over by San Francisco.”

“It might be closed at this hour,” the woman replied.

“It doesn’t matter, I just need to get there.”

“Then climb aboard! I’m heading to San Fran anyway.”

“Thank you! Is it okay if I pack my… things in the back?” Link asked.

“Be my guest. Need any help?”

“No, but thank you.” Link shuffled over to the hidden wagon, hoping the woman didn’t see what it was he was about to pack onto the bed of her truck. He quickly pushed the cart over to the back and brought the door down.

“How in the world am I supposed to get up there?” Rhett asked, astonished at the size of the truck.

“If only we had a ramp or something, then we’d be in business!” Link commented. He began to consider asking for the woman’s help in lifting Rhett into the truck, but that would only expose Rhett even more. “Wait a minute,” he whispered as an idea sparked in his head. He moved the cart another foot away from the truck, and stood between them. He tilted his body forward until his chest hit the edge of the truck.

“What are you doing?” Rhett asked.

“I’m gonna be a ramp. That way you can just climb on me and roll into the truck.”

“What?”

“You’re strong, you can do this.”

“I don’t want to hurt you, Link…”

“Is everything okay back there?” called the woman inside the truck.

“Everything is fine, thank you!” Link replied. He turned his head back to face Rhett, and then spoke to him with gritted teeth, “Get on my back! Quickly, before she comes back here!”

Without further question, Rhett hoisted himself up and reached for Link’s shoulders. Little by little, his heavy, yet smooth body slid upwards on Link’s back. Link grunted at every movement. The texture of Rhett’s blubbery skin through Link’s shirt felt strange against his back, and his weight on him was slightly overwhelming. However, his determination kept him standing strong, and soon enough he heard a loud thump on the truck bed and his back was relieved of pressure.

Link then took the next step, quickly moving to dump what little water in the mining cart out, and he then pushed it back into the bushes. He kicked the trail in the grass away while rushing back to the truck.

“Rhett!” Link called through heavy breaths, reaching for Rhett the moment he returned to the back of the truck. He held the merman’s face, cupping his jaw so tenderly. “Will you be okay back here with no water? It’s about a two hour drive. Can you last that long without getting dehydrated?”

Rhett smiled softly at the worried brunet, and then kissed the bridge of his nose. “I’ll be okay. If I’m in the shade I’ll last much longer. You can trust me.”

“I always have.” Link leaned forward, pressing their lips together desperately like this would be the last time they would see each other. Rhett was tentative about kissing back at first, remembering what happened to Link last time they got too carried away. Feeling the power and desperation in Link’s kiss, he realized his precious human really needed him at that moment. He needed to feel him again, to touch his slippery skin and to kiss those lips once more. Link was scared… and Rhett could feel it. He kissed Link back, relishing the softness of Link’s lips against his own, as well as the strange fresh taste humans would classify as minty.

The truck horn interrupted their moment, reminding them that someone was waiting and they had to get a move on before their pursuers could catch up. Rhett began flopping and rolling over to the corner of the truck bed, where some spare tires and stacks of freshly chopped wood were.

“I’ll hide over here so people don’t see me,” Rhett whispered, just loud enough for Link to hear him. Feeling much more comfortable, knowing Rhett would be safe, Link sighed and shut the door for the truck bed.

“I love you!” Link called, patting Rhett’s head behind the wood as he jogged to the passenger’s seat.

“You all set?” the woman asked. “Seemed like you were having trouble back there.” She looked at Link with a suspicious glare.

Link chuckled, “Yeah… I guess my stuff was heavier than I expected.”

The driver paused. Her silence made Link nervous to the point where he gripped the folds of denim on his legs. He hoped his face didn’t give anything away.

“Still wanna go to Rockaway?” she finally said. Link nodded, discreetly breathing out a sigh of relief. With that, they headed southwest, still with no sight of their pursuers.

However, a couple minutes into their trip, Link couldn’t help but notice a suspiciously large amount of police cruisers and familiar cargo trucks. The traffic began to clutter before a bridge, where even more cruisers were. As they inched closer, Link spotted a familiar face. The leader of the Facility, along with who Link assumed was the chief of police, were scanning every car that crossed the bridge.

In a panic, Link started snagging random bits of clothing that were scattered inside the messy truck cabin. The driver eyed him with confusion as he threw on her old sunglasses, a baseball cap, a torn plaid shirt, and the leather vest she had been looking for weeks for. Before she could ask what he was doing, they were stopped by the chief of police. The Facility leader stood patiently beside him. His piercing hazel eyes stared soullessly through the truck window.

“Hey, Vinny, what’s going on?” asked the driver. Link threw a subtle glance of surprise at the woman. “Lost another one of your stupid specimen? What’d you do this time?”

“You’re no longer employed by the DOD, Monica, so that information cannot be shared with you,” the leader replied. His face remained emotionless and menacingly calm. “But… we are looking for someone. We have a thief on our hands, and he’s on the run. We fear he might be escaping to the state shorelines, so we have the entire city border guarded.”

“What if he’s already out of the city?” Monica asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I have squadrons patrolling the city. One of them just contacted me regarding to a lead.” The leader’s gaze switched to the passenger in Monica’s truck. His brows furrowed at the strange man, whose hands quivered on his lap. “Who’s this?” he asked, eyeing Link like a lion stalking its prey.

Without looking away from the leader, Monica answered harshly, “My friend, Wes. I need to get him to the airport, so could you speed up whatever this shit is that you’re doing?”

Thrown off by Monica’s language, the man drew back, but sneered at the man in the passenger’s seat. “Why are you taking him there?” he asked. “And why does he need to go to the airport?!”

“What the hell, Vinny! You don’t ask why someone’s going to the airport! If Wes needs to go to the airport, that’s his fucking business!” She paused, waved the hair out of her face, and then turned to the policeman. “Now, officer, would you please be so kind as to let us through so my friend here can get to the airport on time?” The policeman nodded and extended an arm out toward the end of the bridge. “Thank you sir,” she said before throwing another fiery glance at he Facility leader.

The drive was uncomfortably quiet once again. Link was absolutely astonished at what had just happened, and was unable to find what words he could say. His heart kept racing faster and faster the longer the silence continued.

“I know it’s you he’s looking for,” the woman eventually said. Her words clenched Link’s heart and prevented it from beating. His face immediately went pale. “And that merman’s in the back of my truck.”

Link felt like he couldn’t breathe anymore. He wanted to roll out the truck door and tumble to his death on the highway. “It’s okay,” she said. “There’s a reason why I quit working for that cretin and his turd of a base.”

Link let out a heavy breath of relief, and the color began to resurface in his face. “Was I that obvious?”

Monica chuckled. “You were shaking like a dog that whizzed on the living room carpet. I’m kinda surprised you didn’t actually wet yourself.”

Link blushed vigorously, yet chuckled with her. “I’m surprised as well, if I’m being honest here,” he replied, thankful that he didn’t need to hide anything from this woman. “Did you… actually work for that guy?”

“Yeah… wasn’t there too long,” she answered with a grumble. “For a couple months they had me there building cameras and waterproof weapons. I knew I was working for a military project, so I knew better than to ask questions.”

“Wait, so the place that had Rhett - I mean, the merman - is a military weapons base?!” Link asked, eyes widened in worry.

“Well, yes and no. The US Department of Defense uses that building for their ‘wound labs’ and other inhumane animal experimentation. Once I realized that my work was being used on dolphins, orcas, and other undersea creatures, I threw a rampage and quit. I didn’t care that it was for 'helping the US increase their defenses’ or whatever. It was wrong… and it sickens me to find out that they were going to try to do the same thing with that merman! They find this amazing creature, and instead of basking in the discovery they try to make it into a weapon.” She took a brief moment to look at Link, who read the anger in her face like a book. “You did good for getting it out of there. You really did the world a true favor.”

“Him,” Link corrected.

“Him?”

“The merman’s name is Rhett… and… he deserves his own pronouns,” Link explained. Monica’s eyebrows shot upwards, and then she smiled.

“You care for him, don’t you?”

“More than anything. That’s really why I got him out,” Link said. “I didn’t know what they were doing in there - I just knew they were hurting him, almost killing him even.”

“Well I hope he knows how much he means to you,” Monica added, “'cause you’ve risked so much to keep him alive and well.”

“Oh… I’m sure he knows,” Link replied with a quiet laugh.

“Good.” A sudden silence existed between the two of them for a moment, filling the cabin of the truck with awkwardness. Without another glance at Link, Monica spoke once more, “Also, would you please take my shit off? You look ridiculous.”

Link jumped in his seat, realizing he was still wearing his disguise. “Oh! Yeah, sorry,” he replied with a chuckle.


	13. Chapter 13

The drive took about two hours before the truck arrived at their destination. It was so dark outside, but they were all still able to see the shore under the moonlight. They pulled up to the front gate, which was drawn down due to the venue being closed for the night, but it wasn’t going to stop Link from keeping his dear merman safe.

“This is the farthest my truck can go,” Monica informed as she and Link gazed at the dark chocolate-colored sand and the huge rock formations far out in the sea.

“Okay, then let’s get Rhett out of the back,” Link concluded, jumping out of the cabin of the truck. He rushed to the back, opening the gate and climbing onto the truck bed. He dug underneath some tires and wood to reach Rhett, who had been hiding there for the entirety of their trip. “Rhett! We’re here!” Link called. Since Rhett was being so quiet, he figured he had taken a nap.

Link removed just a couple more tires until the merman was exposed to the air, curled up as small as he could manage. “Is he okay?” asked Monica, who jumped up into the truck bed to get a better look.

Link’s heart seemed to skip a beat at the sight before him. Rhett wasn’t moving. Mustering up as much hope as he could, Link checked Rhett’s neck for a pulse. Another hand moved close to his mouth, and Link was more than relieved to find that Rhett was still breathing.

“He’s just asleep,” Link replied with a sigh. “He may have even passed out, but I’m sure he’ll be conscious once he’s back in the water.”

Link and Monica helped the merman out of his hiding spot, rolling him gently towards the end of the truck. His normally slippery skin was a lot drier than normal, almost as soft as human skin. Somehow, to Link, that made Rhett feel more real.

“Hold on a second,” Monica said, halting their efforts in getting Rhett off the truck. “I have an idea.” She carefully made her way over to the area where Rhett had been hiding. She picked up a bunch of tires and tossed them off the truck, and then undid the carabiners on the ropes holding the chopped wood together.

“What are you doing?” Link asked. His hand stayed flat on the merman’s belly. Monica walked over Rhett and jumped off the edge of the truck, landing on her feet with a thud.

“Give me a hand really quick,” she called. “We’re gonna carry him on a raft.” Liking her idea, Link slid off the truck bed and ran to help. They arranged the tires in two rows of four, and then fastened them together with the carabiner cords. They then tied the actual rope, which was quite longer than the carabiner cords, to the two tires on the front of their makeshift raft, posing as a handle of sorts to drag the vessel to the beach.

They finished in no time, and were very gentle while slowly transitioning Rhett from the truck to the raft. Thankfully, he didn’t stir during the process, and Link found it a lot easier to carry him when he had Monica’s help.

“Don’t worry, Rhett,” Link whispered once the merman was lying peacefully on the tires. “You’ll be in water soon.” He placed a kiss on Rhett’s forehead, and then rushed to the front of the raft. He and Monica then pulled the heavy vessel towards the beach. It was a lot easier once they hit the sand, which moved along with the tires.

They soon reached the cold waves, and then carefully scooted the merman into the shallow water. Monica then gathered the raft and let them be alone for a while as she put her things away. Within about a minute, Rhett’s eyes fluttered open.

“Where are we?” he mumbled, smiling the second he saw Link’s face. “Did we make it?”

“We did, Rhett… We’re here,” Link replied softly. Rhett’s brows furrowed. There was something wrong.

“Does that upset you?” Rhett asked, questioning the lack of excitement in Link’s face and tone. “This should be a happy moment! We have another hiding place! Surely they’ll never find us here!”

“Rhett,” Link enunciated, “we can’t stay here.”

“What do you mean?”

“This… is a public area, Rhett. It’s closed now, but…” Link let out a heavy breath, already regretting what he was about to say. “You need to go home.”

Rhetts eyes widened in shock. “What?”

“I’m…” Link sniffled, “I’m sorry, Rhett.”

“I thought we -”

“I know! It’s just… We can’t keep running, Rhett. We can’t keep finding another place to hide every time things get too close.” Link paused, wiping the tears out of his eyes. “It’s so hard, Rhett… I don’t want to do this to you! I don’t want to have to let you go, but… you’ll be safer here. I want… no… Ineed you to be safe.” He sank to his knees in the coffee-colored sand, letting the water soak his jeans as he wrapped the merman tightly in his arms. “Please…”

“But will _you_ be safe?” Rhett asked, just louder than a whisper. Link drew back a bit, seeing the redness blotching up in Rhett’s shimmering eyes. “I need to know that you, too, will be somewhere out of harm’s way.”

“He’ll be with me,” called Monica, now empty-handed, as she walked to Link’s side. Rhett immediately stared at her with a threatening gaze.

Link put a gentle hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay, Rhett. She’s nice.” He gave the merman a reassuring smile, which calmed Rhett down significantly. Link then turned to face Monica. “Wait, are you serious?!”

“Yeah, Vinny’s base workers won’t come bother me. You should be able to lay low at my place until they find some other specimen to play with.”

“You think they’ll eventually lay off then?” Link asked. Suddenly, their glimmer of hope seemed brighter.

“Oh yeah. It costs a lot of time and money to go out chasing you. Eventually they have to get back to work.” Monica cracked a lopsided grin.

“So you’ll come back for me?!” Rhett enthused, holding Link’s shoulders with a tight grip.

“Once we know for sure that the coast is clear, and I have the money, I’ll find a way for us to be together!” Link hugged Rhett tightly, ignoring the water on Rhett’s skin, which had been slowly regaining his natural color. Rhett didn’t hesitate to hug him back, and even pressed a kiss against Link’s cheek.

The two eventually released each other. Rhett immediately reached behind his head, removing the twine necklace from around his neck. He handed it to Link with great care.

“Here,” Rhett said softly. Link reached forward and took the necklace from his hand. His thumb rubbed over the tiny shell fastened in the center, polishing it with the sands that were stuck to his hands. “I want you to take a part of me with you. That way I’ll be with you until the day comes when we can be together again.”

Link smiled, fighting the tears building up in his eyes. “But we’re mates for life. We’ll always be with each other… no matter what.” They went in for one more kiss, dry yet desperate. Link knew he had to go, but he wished he could stay on that beach for the rest of his life. Once their kiss broke, he took his glasses off. With a sniffle, he placed them gingerly on Rhett’s face.

“You don’t need these?” Rhett asked as he played with the strange frames resting on the bridge of his nose.

“I can always get another pair… or even contacts if I have to.” Link wiped the tears out of his eyes. “You gave me something of yours, so I’m gonna give you something of mine.”

“I will keep them safe and treasure them forever,” Rhett chirped, amazed at the magnification of the lenses and how weird everything looked. “Is this how humans see things? All wiggly and up close?”

Link chuckled, “No, those are made to help me see better. They probably make things look a little funny for you.” Rhett nodded, removing the glasses from his eyes and exploring the folding parts in his hands instead.

Monica cleared her throat, interrupting the lovers’ exchange. Link turned to face her. “Sorry to break this cute fest up, but if we don’t head out now, I’m gonna fall asleep on the road.”

“Yeah, sorry. Just one moment,” Link replied. Monica shrugged and began walking back to the top of the hill.

“I’ll get the truck warmed up.”

Link turned back to Rhett and held his damp, green hands. “I gotta go now.” Rhett nodded softly. “I’ll try to come back to visit every night the moon is full. Stay safe.” He kissed Rhett’s cheek, soft and sweet. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Link.”

Link rose to his feet, blowing one last kiss to his beloved merman. Rhett returned the motion with a sad smile. His heart ached with every step Link took back up the hill. He wished he could somehow grow legs and run after him. He wished. He wished so hard… but now he was on his own. He didn’t know how long it would take, but he knew in his heart that he would see Link again.

“He’ll come back for me,” he whispered to himself. “I know he will.”

End of "Merman"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so before y'all start freaking out about this ending, YES there will be a sequel. I'm not just gonna leave it as is XD  
> there's just something special about what happens next that requires it to be a sequel and not just another chapter... and I'm super excited to start writing it!


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